


An Ache In His Bones

by BrokenHeartedQueen



Category: Batman (Comics), Batman - All Media Types, Batman and Robin (Comics)
Genre: Adopted Sibling Relationship, Angst, Chronic Illness, Damian Wayne Needs a Hug, Damian Wayne-centric, Everyone Needs A Hug, Fluff and Angst, Gen, Hurt/Comfort, Jason Todd Swears, Sickfic
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-03-19
Updated: 2021-02-06
Packaged: 2021-02-28 16:41:39
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 23
Words: 34,986
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/23220385
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/BrokenHeartedQueen/pseuds/BrokenHeartedQueen
Summary: "Damian heard his alarm go off, knowing it was time for him to get up. He struggled to blink his eyes open, as he felt like it required all his energy to just do that simple movement."Damian hasn't been feeling like himself lately. He not sure what wrong, but he concluded it's nothing to fussed about.
Relationships: Alfred Pennyworth & Damian Wayne, Bruce Wayne & Damian Wayne, Dick Grayson & Damian Wayne, Jason Todd & Damian Wayne, Tim Drake & Damian Wayne
Comments: 819
Kudos: 2029
Collections: Its DC





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> This fic has nothing to do with everything that going! I been planning this fic for months.

Damian heard his alarm go off, knowing it was time for him to get up. He struggled to blink his eyes open, as he felt like it required all his energy to just do that simple movement. 

Recently, these last few days, he had been feeling exhausted. It confused him as to why, because he had been getting adequate sleep. It was something that Pennyworth stressed as very important, he is not foolish enough to ignore the kind butler’s advice. 

Waking up felt more of a hassle than fighting low lifes at this point. Nevertheless, he forced himself to open his eyes and stand up from his bed.

As he tried to rub the tiredness from his eyes, Damian began his morning routine. His steps were sloppy and his movements were slow. In his mind, there was no need to rush. As Drake liked to say, it was the weekend and he was allowed to idle. 

He made his way downstairs for breakfast. Damian saw his Father reading on his work tablet as he drank his cup of coffee. When he looked at the other side of the table Damian let out a ‘Tt’ at the scene in front of him. As Drake was mirroring his Father, also working on his tablet and drinking coffee, if Damian had to guess, he would say Drake was drinking black coffee.

“Good morning, Father,” Damian said as he looked up from his tablet.

Bruce gave him a small nod in acknowledgment and went back to his work. Damian could see Drake roll his eyes at Bruce. Drake looked at Damian as he was expecting him to say something. Damian stared back and tilted his head to the side in confusion. 

“Well good morning to you as well, Demon Brat,” Tim scoffed, as he went back to his work and Damian simply glared back. Usually Drakes ignores him in the morning, how was Damian supposed to know he wanted to be greeted as well? He had many abilities, but mind reading is not one of them.

“Clearly I was not speaking to you, Drake. I only intended to wish Father a good day, you were not included. I will go and find Pennyworth.” Damian huffed away to the kitchen in his search for the butler’s company. 

His steps were slow and deliberate, as a way to conserve his energy, a technique he acquired from the League. He was still feeling muddled by his exhaustion. Damian usually considered himself to be a morning person. Many years of training at the crack of dawn wired him to appreciate the early start. It seemed that the last few days on patrol had made him more tired than usual. He would modify his training to take that into account. 

He found Pennyworth working in the kitchen. He was preparing a simple breakfast for everyone; eggs, bacon, and toast. Damian's nose twitched in displeasure. Since he became a vegetarian, he had become sensitive to the smell of animal product. He was pleased to see Alfred bring out his oatmeal with grains and fruit on it. Alfred always knew what he was craving in the morning, even without him telling so.

Damian was thankful for Alfred as he always took his dietary needs into consideration when making him food. He did not complain even once when he told him he was a vegetarian now. He simply took it in stride to find delicious ways to keep him healthy. He was grateful for Pennyworth's hard work, even though his pancakes left much to be desired.

“Hello, Pennyworth. I hope that you had a peaceful morning,” Damian greeted Alfred as the butler turned around and gave him a polite smile.

“Hello to you as well, Master Damian. I have prepared for you, oatmeal with some fresh cut fruit and grains for your breakfast. You can have it with orange juice if you please.” Pennyworth presented the breakfast he had prepared for him.

“I appreciate your hard work Pennyworth. While I appreciate your offer of orange juice, I would like to drink some Yerba Matte tea with my breakfast today,” he said trying to stifle a yawn.

Damian always requested some Yerba Matte tea to be in the cupboard, as it tended to give extra energy in the morning. He disliked the bitter taste of coffee. He was aware he could always sweeten it to his liking, but he did not want to become dependent on it like Drake was. The less in common that he had between his supposed brother the better. He would prefer a good cup of tea any day.

He saw Pennyworth raise his eyebrow at him in question as he nodded and simply replied with ‘as you wish.’ 

Damian finished making his tea and headed toward the table, he wanted to eat with his Father and he supposed that Drake wouldn't be the worst company. When he arrived on the table he noticed that they were working on some case files. It seemed that they had finished their work on Wayne Enterprise. 

“Tsk, Pennyworth would not be pleased to see you working on these case files during breakfast,” Damian reminded them as Drake handed over some paperwork to Father.

“These are old cold case files. B believes they are connected in some way but we can’t figure out how. They are all different genders, ethnicity and they lived nowhere near each other,” Drake explained completely disregarding Damian's warning.

Bruce hummed in agreement and Damian rubbed his face and took a sip from his tea. He proceeded to take all the files from Drake's hands. He let out a shout of displeasure but Damian simply ignored him and spread all twelve case files on the table.

“You believe this is the work of a serial killer?” Damian inquired.

“All the victims were stabbed and left to bleed out. Ten out of the twelve victims died in the hospital. The weapon used for each victim is different, there are no physical attributes that connect them. Some had valuables stolen, others did not. The location of each of the murders was more than 10 miles apart. I can understand why the police believe the murders have no connections. I just have...a feeling,” Father explained while drinking some of his coffee, at least his father had the decency to add milk and sugar to his. 

Damian nodded in acknowledgement, as he looked over the profiles of the victim. He could understand where the difficulties lie as they were no glaring similarities. As time passed, his vision blurred staring at the files, and he rubbed his eyes to try to get them to focus again. That’s when he noticed something unusual about the first victim. He confirmed his theory when eight of the other victims shared the same similarities. He handed the eight case files to his father and let out a yawn that had his eyes watering.

“These victims all have B- blood type. This could not be a coincidence as only five percent of the population have this blood type. The real question would be why is the serial killer targeting people with B-blood type specifically,” Damian stated, fumbling on his words toward the end as he tried to hold back another yawn. 

Drake's eyes widened at his words as he looked over at the paperwork in Bruce's hands. Damian couldn’t help the small proud smile that adorned his face.

“I can’t believe we missed this!” Drake exclaimed as he put his coffee mug down and moved his hands through his hair. 

“It’s something easy to overlook, when you think about serial killers you expect certain physical aspects not their blood type. Good catch, bud,” Father said as he went and ruffled Damian's hair.

Damian saw as his Father went back to the case files. While he didn’t like it when his brothers messed up his hair, he didn’t mind it when his father did it.

At that moment, Pennyworth came in carrying everyone else's breakfast and started to serve both Father and Drake. He saw how Alfred changed Drake’s coffee with orange juice, without his brother noticing. Damian could not help giving a small smile at the amusing scene. Pennyworth gave him a wink when he noticed him staring. 

“Master Bruce-“ Alfred stared blankly at Bruce, his father tried not to flinch at Pennyworth's stern tone.  
“I hope I do not need to repeat the rules of the manor. Considering you agreed to these terms. Do I, Master Bruce?”

“That won’t be necessary Alf. I was just finishing up. Thank you for the food, it looks great” Father said as he pushed the file away and made space for Alfred to set down the food.

“Very well, Master Bruce. If that is all you need from me then I will take my leave,” Alfred said as he finished putting the plates in front of Drake and went off. Both Bruce and Drake voice echoing their thanks to the butler.

Damian ate his breakfast in silence, content to hear both his Father and Drake exchange ideas. He shared a smile with his Father when Drake noticed that his coffee was actually orange juice now. 

His tea was helping him wake up. He would arrange his schedule to get more rest. The last few days had been extremely busy, that is why he was tired.

Despite feeling exhausted, Damian enjoyed this quiet moment with his family. 

He was okay.


	2. Chapter 2

His day started with a small ache in the back of his head. He was already dreading waking up, he was tired and had a longer night than usual. Damian has already lost count of how many times someone escaped from Arkham in the last month. He debated the advantages of staying in bed for longer. He already had his day planned out, he could not afford to stay in bed any longer. Especially if he wanted to continue his drawing today. It needed to be done before Christmas. With the prospect of getting some of the drawings done, he forced himself to get out of bed.

He made his way down to the kitchen. His father was nowhere to be found, having already driven to Wayne Enterprises. Damian was aware that Pennyworth had departed early in the morning to get what the Manor needed. 

“Hey Damian,” Drake said as he came to the kitchen, looking as tired as Damian felt.

Damian flinched at the sound of Drake's voice rattling his already sensitive ears. He went to the fridge to grab and drain an entire bottle of water.

“What do you want, Drake?” He asked not in the mood for pleasantries. 

Drake dragged his hands in front of his face, showing his frustration to Damian. Honestly, Damian thought to himself, he simply wanted to continue his day without any interruptions.

“B wanted me to let you know that he doesn’t want you patrolling this evening. Batgirl and Spoiler would be keeping an eye on things tonight. He wants you to rest, it's been a rough few days,” Tim stated as he started to make himself a pot of coffee.

From all the things Damian anticipated Drake saying, that was not one of them. He didn’t want to admit that he was actually relieved about his Father giving him a break. Damian couldn’t help feeling worried about why his father thought it was necessary to give him a break. Did Father not trust his abilities to keep going?

“I don’t need rest. I can keep going, you can tell Father I am going to be patrolling tonight.” Damian argued, while Drake just rolled his eyes at him.

“Don’t be so difficult, Bruce just wants us to be well rested. You don’t have to be a brat about it.” Drake finished up his coffee and made himself another cup.

Damian’s hand went to his forehead and rubbed the area, trying to relieve the pressure he felt. He did not understand what Drake meant. Damian wasn't being difficult, he did not believe so. Everyone has had a rough couple of days. Why should he be the one getting rest?

“I’m not being a brat. I just believe that Father is not being fair.” Damian argued as he approached Drake and took away the second cup of coffee. He did not believe his brother should be having this much coffee so early in the morning.

“Give that back! You are being a brat, just be grateful for getting the night off. If you want to go on patrol, tell Bruce yourself,” Drake said as he snatched the cup of coffee and stormed off.

His head began to throb as Drake words rattled in his brain. Confused as to what just happened, after all he was just trying to help.

Damian took his phone out and his hands hover over his father’s phone number. He hit the call button and put the phone against his ear.

The phone rang and rang, he was about to hang up when he heard his father's voice.

“Hello, this is Bruce speaking-”

“Father, I wanted to speak to you about-” Damian tried when the voice cut him off again.

“I am not available at this time-” The answering machine started to say when Damian ended the call with more force than necessary.

It’s fine, Damian thought to himself, he did not want to patrol anyway.

Damian’s day became worse as it progressed. The throb began to pulsate , and it was not only in the back of his head but it started to spread all the way to his forehead. He has done his best to ignore it, but it was becoming more difficult to do.

He went downstairs back to his room in search of his hidden rations. Damian did not want to worry Alfred by asking him for some ibuprofen for a simple headache.

When he got to his room, he moved his bed to the left. He counted six wooden planks, on the seventh one he pushed inwards and it revealed a small chest. Damian got the chest out, put on the passcode and opened the chest. In the chest, he had some of his most cherished possessions as well as a first aid kit that had everything he could need to treat himself.

Damian picked the bottle of ibuprofen and took two of the pills. Hoping that this will diminish his pain. 

He did not have to worry about patrol anymore, so he laid down in his bed and tried to get some rest. Time went on as he tossed and turned, Damian was not able to sleep. The medicine was not working to relieve his pain nor diminished the pressure he felt in his head. At this point, it would be a waste to try to sleep as his headache would not allow him to do so.

Damian stood up from his bed and made his way to the library. If he could not sleep, he would at least try to get some painting done. He was working on some gifts for his family. Christmas was coming soon, and he wished to show his appreciation to those close to him. He decided that something that he made himself would have more meaning than something he bought. At least, that is what Grayson told him.

As soon as he got to the library, Damian went to the far end shelf. He picked the third red book from the bottom and it showed a latch, where he hid his current ideas.

His first sketch was his gift for Grayson. After all, he was the one who taught him about the Christmas tradition. He struggled when deciding what to make him. It was hard to figure out what was thoughtful and not insensitive. 

He looked at all three of his ideas that he had for Grayson’s gift. First one was a quick sketch of Grayson with Sitka. He believed Grayson would appreciate the sentiment. On the other hand, his second option was Grayson with his parents. He is well aware that Grayson doesn’t have enough pictures with his parents. Damian wanted to draw one with Grayson as he is now and what his parents might have looked like. He feared that this would be insensitive. His last option was a family portrait with all of them. Damian finished the one at the manor, but he wanted to include Jason as well.

His head kept pulsating as he rubbed his eyes trying to focus on the sketches. If he wanted to get all the sketches done by Christmas, he needed to decide what to draw for Grayson tonight. 

Thinking about what to do was making everything worse. Damian's head hurt, he couldn’t figure out what he wanted to draw, and his father didn’t think he was good enough to go on patrol. 

He stood up with a growl, and threw the sketches to the ground. In just a second, he was pacing around the library. His head was in his hands as he tried to put some pressure on his forehead, hoping it would ease some of his pain. He stopped pacing and took a deep breath. At that moment, Damian took his hand away and saw the sketches on the ground. Some of the sketches overlap the others. He took a good look at the papers and an idea popped into his head. He could simply make a portrait representing all of his ideas together in one. A small smile adorned Damian's lips as he arranged all the sketches together. 

Time passed, and Damian really tried to work on the new sketch, but his headache kept distracting him. Smudges filled his sketchbook as many mistakes were made. He ripped the page from the sketch book and balled it up. He blamed the throbbing of his head for making him draw Grayson with lopsided eyes. He tried to draw Sitka instead thinking it would be easier to draw an animal, but he could not get the proportions right. At this point, he knew that it wasn’t a simple headache but a migraine that would not go away. 

Damian let out a sigh and started picking up his sketches and put them away in his hiding spot. He did not hear his Father come in, Pennyworth is occupied doing his household chores and Drake would be displeased to see him after what happened this morning. Damian still yearned for some company. Not because he was a child who needed comfort, but because he has not seen anyone since the morning.

He went to the manor garden and took out his whistle and blew into it, then he waited. A few moments later, Goliath flew in and settled in front of Damian and started licking his face.

“Tt- That’s disgusting, cease this behavior.” Damian grumbled as he pushed Goliath away.

Goliath let out a whine as he started nuzzling him. Damian smiled as he let Goliath smother him with affection. The big beast lay down on the ground and Damian used him as a pillow. He felt as Goliath warmth surrounded him and a feeling of safety overcame him. 

“Good boy,” Damian mumbled at Goliath, already feeling better. 

At that moment, he was finally able to fall asleep.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thanks again to Cdelphiki for betareading this chapter once again! Please leave some kudos and comments! Always makes me happy! I realized I didn't leave my tumblr last time so here we go @brokenhearted-queen!


	3. Chapter 3

Looking at himself in the mirror, Damian wondered if he should purchase makeup to hide the dark circles. He touched them gently, not understanding why they were getting worse. He got the best rest with Goliath that he’d had in weeks. Damian should not be feeling tired, but he was. Father had already cut back on his patrolling time. He did not want him to notice his dark circles and limit them even more. Tonight, he decided to do some research on the best way to hide dark circles.

Damian made his way toward the cave. His father asked him to come down and check some case files for him. He was happy to offer his expertise, but Damian knew that his father just wanted him to stay put. After his father found him in the garden resting with Goliath, he was trying to spread out the work more evenly. 

He wanted to feel offended but Father had forced this upon everyone, including Drake. His brother did not take the news gracefully, as he wanted to complete his work quickly, but Father did not hear his complaints and said that everyone's health was more important. 

Damian made his way downstairs, to the cave. As soon as he arrived he saw both his father and brother working. 

Drake simply looked up for a second, nodded at him and went back to the paperwork. His father on the hand waved him over to the table.

“Hello, Damian-” his father greeted him with a small smile.

Father looked exhausted, his dark circles more defined than usual. His shoulder slump in a way that made him look like he was carrying the world on them. Batman took longer shifts to compensate for rest time for everyone. He thought his father was being a hypocrite, and he knew his brothers agreed with him. He saw Grayson changed the schedule to allow his father to have more breaks. Naturally, he protested but he was outvoted by the group. Pennyworth being the final nail in his coffin. He snapped out of his thoughts when he saw his father looking at him expecting his response. It seemed he wasn’t paying much attention.

“Have there been any more casualties?” he asked, pointing to the case files on the table.

Drake let out a sigh and rubbed his face. Damian could tell that he was tired, he could relate to that. No matter how well he rested he was, Damian still felt exhausted. Not even his tea was helping him feel awake anymore. Maybe he should try something else, he knows Todd liked some sports drinks. 

“Damian!” 

He jolted out of his thoughts once again and looked up at Drake who put his hand on his shoulder to get his attention.

“I apologize, I was thinking about the previous victims. Repeat yourself,” he requested and saw how Drake rolled his eyes at him.

“One more victim following our last conversation. We do have a list of potential victims that were killed in a similar way, but don’t have the same blood type.” Drake nodded toward the paper pile.

Damian eyebrows furrowed, not understanding the inconsistencies. That means there were at least nine victims, he felt foolished when he thought about the fable creatures of the night, better known as vampires. It wouldn’t have been surprising, after all aliens exist. He felt foolished thinking about vampires at this point. This is all Grayson’s influence.

He grabbed the pile that contained the documents with potential victims. It was a huge pile, just looking at it he can feel his headache reemerged. Maybe, he should start taking vitamins pills to help in avoiding the headache. He read plenty of research of how this could help, he was planning on getting his family on a vitamin schedule. His biggest concern being Grayson as his diet mainly consisted of cereal. Damian looked up at Drake and saw he was speaking to him once again and he simply did not realize. He simply raised his hand, a bit annoyed at himself.

“Tell me the reason as to why these are potential victims,” Damian stated as he already felt a twinge in his forehead.

“As I was saying-” Drake repeated as he rolled his eyes at him, “They were all left out to bleed out and while they aren’t B-negative blood types, they are some that match.” 

Damian simply hummed at Drake and started to work. He started separating by blood type, and alphabetize them to make it more organize.

In total, Damian had twenty-two files, he had to count them twice to make sure he had the correct number. Nine of them were B- negative but Drake already said that...right? Damian rubbed his forehead and let out a big sigh. It was nine B- negative and three O- negative. The others were a mixture of A and AB blood type. 

Damian looked up at Tim, who was already looking at him with furrowed eyebrows. He looked worried. Damian couldn’t help and wonder why.  
“Do you have a theory as to why the serial killer is targeting B-negative people?” Damian asked him and Drake just shook his head. Damian rolled his eyes at him.

Damian looked at the victims’ files as well, trying to find any other similarities. He saw that one of the victims had a cat, he has to feed Alfred after he finished here. He couldn’t remember if he fed Titus already. He thought that Pennyworth told him he already fed Titus, or was that yesterday? He will check after he feeds Alfred. He snapped out of his thoughts when he felt someone touching his shoulder. He looked up and saw it was his father. 

“Want to share your thoughts?” Father asked, and Damian doubted his father wanted to know if he fed his pets yet.

“Not yet,” he simply replied, buying himself more time.

He kept looking around for other clues where something caught his eyes. He examined all the other victims and couldn't believe his eyes. He started making piles, he felt like he had been doing that a lot lately. Damian still felt confused, because that gave him more questions than answers. The first pile had fourteen cases and the second pile had the rest. 

“I don’t know the connection of this or the why, but everyone on this pile was an organ donor.” Damian informed them as he pointed at the smaller pile of the two. 

He saw Drake eyebrows furrowed as he started looking at the files that Damian pointed to. Father looked at him and gave him a small smile. Damian simply rubbed the back of his neck. He couldn’t help but think that this was something they should have notice. Damian put his hand against his forehead. His headache was definitely back, he hoped it did not become a migraine like last time.

Damian looked at his father and Drake, who were talking among themselves about the case. He assumed at this point he wasn’t needed anymore. They got a new puzzle piece and now they're trying to put it together. Damian let out a sigh as he tried to walk away and let them figure the case by themselves, he was tired anyway.

Maybe he could work on his sketches for the gifts, he had to figure out which one he's going to start next. The real question was who was he focusing on next. His gift for Grayson was looking decent already and he felt confident about Grayson liking it. He wanted to have everyone sketch done so he could go buy the materials he needed to get it done. What would Pennyworth like? Damian couldn’t help to wonder.

He started walking away deciding to brainstorm what he wanted to draw for Pennyworth. He should also confirm if he fed his pets yet while he at it. 

“Wait Damian!” he heard Drake's voice call out as he jogged to catch up with him. 

“Yes?” he answered looking at Drake slightly confused.

“Dick is coming over later tonight, we are having a movie night. You should join us.” Damian looked up at Drake, his eyes widened slightly. 

“I wasn’t aware that Grayson was coming today…” His voice trailed off, as he looked down and backed up at Drake. He could see a flash of emotion crossed by Drake's face but he couldn't tell what it was. Drake let out a chuckle as he rubbed the back of his neck.

“I was supposed to tell you but I got sidetracked with the case. Anyway, do you want to come or not?” Drake's eyes shifted after inviting him once again, Damian could tell there was something he wasn’t telling him. He let out a sigh as he rubbed his forehead, he honestly doesn’t have the energy to question his brother's actions.

“I request that there will be no musicals.” He didn’t think his head could handle them.

“Sure, Damian...I’ll tell Dick no musicals.” Drake said with his eyebrows furrowed. Damian nodded at him and waved his father off.

He headed to his room and made sure to grab some migraine medication for his developing headache. He will have to double check to see which animals he fed. After that he will prepare for some bonding time with his brothers.

Damian wanted to enjoy this, hopefully he is feeling better by then.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hello everyone! Hope you like this chapter! Please give me some love with kudos and comments! You can find me at tumblr as @brokenhearted-queen Go ask me questions! Thank you once again, Cdelphiki. For being my beta reader! If you are here you already know her if not, go check her out!


	4. Chapter 4

Tim was looking forward to spending some time with Dick. They had been planning this for weeks, just some brotherly bonding between the two of them. Somehow he managed to invite the little demon brat, for no other reason than he been looking odd the last few days.

Damian looked more exhausted than usual, even Tim had noticed. Damian’s dark circles were darker than usual and besides that one instance in the morning he hadn’t complained about his patrol time being cut short. Tim knew that his younger brother wasn’t very sociable but he had been ignoring the family more often than he usually did. Only interacting with them when they asked him for some input on the case.

Tim has to admit that Damian's insights on the case had been extremely helpful in building their case, but he could tell that he was distracted while looking at the files. Tim had to get his attention multiple times while Damian went through the files. He was sure Damian wasn’t just trying to ignore him like he usually did. That was why he invited him to movie night, so he could be able to observe him some more, be able to tell if there was something happening with Damian. 

He couldn’t stop the huff that escaped his mouth. Tim knew he was extra protective of the brat after getting him back from the dead, he was probably being paranoid. But he knew what happened when people came back, their eyes were different, they look as if they carry the weight of the world on their shoulders. Tim feared that Damian might be suffering from depression, it would explain the weird way he had been acting lately. Tim would take this opportunity to see if his brother needed help. In that moment, he will prepare for the movie night.

Tim made his way to the kitchen, making sure he waved at Alfred when he passed him by. He started his search for snacks, knowing Alfred had them hidden. He knew that Dick would eat anything sugary, while he was more of a chip guy himself. He looked at the bag of dry vegetables and a package of peanuts. Tim had seen Damian eating this, so he grabbed them and made his way to the living room to set the items down. His eyes widened and he rushed back to grab some drinks for the night. Some waters and sodas should be enough for the three of them.

As soon as Tim put the drinks down he saw Dick walk in. 

“Timmy! Can I pick the movie? I was thinking Frozen 2. Some sisterly bonding to go with our brotherly bonding!” Dick said excitedly as he gave him a hug.

“I promised Damian that we wouldn’t pick a musical. So, as long as you don’t pick a musical we’re good,” Tim told him as he pushed his octopus of a brother away.

Dick raised his eyebrows at him while he stepped back. Tim could tell what he was thinking and he simply rolled his eyes at him. He shrugged at Dick, he didn't need his skepticism.

“I thought we were having some quality time together so you could complain about Damian,” Dick stated while he crossed his arms over his chest.

“Yeah, but somebody forgot to tell the little twerp they were coming and his feelings got hurt. I told him that I simply forgot to invite him. You’re welcome.” Tim gave him a slight glare to show his dislike about the entire situation. Is not like Tim could tell Dick that he was worried about the brat. 

Dick rubbed the back of his neck as he looked slightly guilty. Good, he should have told Damian that he was coming today.

“I was going to tell him, but he fell asleep before I could. B told me he was catching up on sleep and I didn’t want to bother him,” Dick explained while he looked at Tim with a meeked smile, and Tim simply shook his head.

“Well, he doesn’t want any musicals so your idea of Frozen 2 is vetoed. Pick something else, no singing, maybe something that won’t make the Demon Spawn want to kill us,” Tim said while he threw the remote at Dick, which he easily grabbed. 

“Oh come on! Damian wouldn't kill us over a movie.” Dick said as he threw himself on the couch and laid down taking up most of the space.

“He tried to kill me because I was breathing,” Tim said while he popped open the bag of chips.

“He apologized for that, come on, Damian is a sweetheart deep inside. You just need to look beyond his past, he changed for the better,” Dick said, getting serious when speaking to Tim. Tim nodded, aware that Damian had changed, which was one of the reasons he was worried about him after he came back. 

“I know, Dick. Really-” Tim cut himself off when he saw Damian approach them.

He observed Damian as he walked in. Tim could see his dark circle looking deeper than they had before. Damian's shoulders were hunched as he walked at a clumsy pace, which was the complete opposite of the regal air that he usually carries. His olive skin looked unnaturally pale. Tim couldn’t help but wonder if he was not getting sleep because of nightmares. 

“Hello, Grayson, Drake, did you pick the movie for the evening?” Damian asked as he gave them each a quick nod. 

“Yes! We are going to watch Zootopia!” Dick exclaimed as he dragged Damian down to the couch with them. He ended up being squished between Tim and Dick. 

“You mean the furry movie?” Tim asked Dick with a smirked, eyebrow lifting in a teasing manner. Dick gasped at him in mocked betrayal.

“It is not a furry movie! Is a thrilling movie about a detective fighting against minorities stereotypes while becoming friends with her natural enemy,” Dick shot back.

Damian simply looked confused about what was going on. Tim was slightly jealous about that.

“Grayson, I won’t be an accessory on the sexualization of innocent animals. I am truly appalled.” Damian answered looking extremely uncomfortable. Dick looked shocked at Damian's answers and looked over at Tim for help.

“I’m just joking, Damian. Zootopia is a Disney movie and it's actually pretty good. Dick is working through his Disney phase. You honestly saved us from having to watch any of the Disney princesses. I think you will actually enjoy Zootopia.” Tim explained trying to sooth Damian nerves. He wanted him to relax, not freak out, but it was to easy to tease Dick. 

“I see, if Drake agrees with the movie choice, I have no complaints.” Damian said as he started settling in. As he grabbed the bag of peanuts and Tim couldn’t help and give a small proud smile.

“Great! If everyone agrees, I’m going to start,” Dick said as he pressed play to the movie and everyone settled in.

It was quiet while the movie played, everyone too focused on the movie to have any small talk. He was startled out of his thoughts when Damian's head fell on his shoulder. Tim looked down in shock when he saw that Damian fell asleep, especially against his shoulders. Damian must be more tired than Tim thought. 

Damian looked innocent sleeping like this, he looked like a child. It’s almost endearing to see Damian trust him enough to fall asleep on him. Sometimes, it's hard to remember that Damian was only kid, an eleven year old kid at that. One that came back from the dead, and was suffering the consequences of it. 

Tim would have to keep a closer eye on him to make sure he was eating and sleeping well. Maybe, even speak to Bruce about what's happening.

Tim just needed to keep an eye on Damian, make sure he was taking care of himself.

But for now he would let the brat sleep.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hello everyone! Sorry for the late update, I had to much university stuff going on! I decided to push my updates on Friday now since I always have a lot of stuff due on Thursday. First time writing Tim POV, so tell me what you all think! Thanks to Cdelphiki again for beta reading this for me! Find me in tumblr at @brokenhearted-queen! Love y'all!


	5. Chapter 5

Damian felt upset about what happened during game night. He wanted to spend some time with Grayson, but instead he fell asleep, on top of Drake of all places. The more he thought about last night, the more his head throbbed. Damian felt really tired, he could feel a knot in his stomach that wouldn't untangle.

Making his way to the kitchen was more challenging than he thought it would be, he was trying to figure out what he wanted for breakfast. His stomach was bothering him and he wanted to have some ginger tea to help ease it. Maybe, some fruits, that shouldn’t bother his stomach too much. He could grab some apples and bananas, in case Titus decided he wanted to steal some of his food.

He needed to take him on a walk after he finished his plans for the day. Maybe they would walk around the garden. Damian shook his head at the mere idea of walking Titus in the garden. Last time they went on a walk in the garden he got an earful from Pennyworth, something about his roses. It would be better to simply go to the dog park. As long as he did not finish too late. He did have patrol this afternoon.

As soon as he entered the kitchen he saw both Drake and Pennyworth. Drake, as always, was drinking his cup of coffee and Pennyworth was preparing everyone breakfast. Damian looked around in confusion, he believed that his father would be having breakfast with them today. By the look of it, it was just him and Drake. Father told him they were going to be having breakfast together today...or was it Sunday? He couldn’t hold back his sigh as he started rubbing his forehead. He felt nausea hit making his stomach flip as he sat down across from Drake. Holding his palm across his mouth, hoping to ease his nerves.

When Damian looked up he saw Drake staring at him. Damian stared back at him, and shrugged. Whatever comment Drake wanted to make, Damian didn’t want to hear it, the only thing on his mind was getting some medicine for his headache. That wasn’t entirely true, Damian admitted to himself. He couldn’t ignore the uneasiness he felt in his stomach, he hoped that the reason behind it was that he had not eaten in a while.

His mind wandered back to the movie yesterday. While he fell asleep halfway through the movie he was enjoying it. He understood the appeal to it, it certainly seemed like a movie Grayson would enjoy, Damian had his theories of what happened to the missing mammals. The movie seemed to take the predictable route, he will have to finish it by himself and talk to Grayson about it later.

Out of the corner of his eyes, he could see Alfred approach with a bowl of yogurt with grains and fruit. The mere thought of eating the yogurt made him gag, he put his palm on his mouth once again. This time trying to hold back the overwhelming nausea that took over. Damian took a deep breath and held it in for a few seconds before realising it. He saw Drake staring at him once again but Damian was too preoccupied to care. After he got the urge to gag under control he looked up to see Pennyworth patiently waiting for him to take the breakfast he prepared for him.

“I appreciate the fact that you made me breakfast, Pennyworth, but I must decline. I simply want some fruit this morning,” Damian explained. Pennyworth eyebrow raised in question as he stared down at him. Damian shifted in his seat as he avoided eye contact.

“Very well, Master Damian. I will go ahead and prepare you some fruits for you,” Pennyworth said as he walked away carrying the bowl of yogurt. Damian took a deep breath of relief, feeling his stomach settle slightly.

He closed his eyes as he put his face in his hands and exhaled loudly. Damian didn’t understand why he was feeling so out of it. His mind lately staying in the clouds, he couldn’t blame being overworked as the reason anymore since the new schedule was put in place. Now, his stomach was acting up. He hoped that his ginger tea could help with that. He was brought out of his thoughts when he heard Drake fork hit against his tea mug.

“Dick wanted to say goodbye but he didn’t want to wake you. He said to give him a call later today,” Tim said as he took a sip of his coffee.

“I see that you have become the family messenger boy,” Damian said with a roll of his eyes. First his father and now Grayson, they truly needed to speak to him directly. There was no reason why all his conversation with his family happened between a third person. He rubbed the back of his neck as he started to feel drained.

“Yeah, yeah, it’s not like it's something I want to do,” Drake grumbled as he moved his fork back and forth between his eggs and sausage.

Damian did not respond to Drake as Pennyworth put a bowl of fresh cut fruit. He gave Alfred a nod showing his appreciation. He ate slowly, in fear that if he ate too fast he would make his already upset stomach worse.

His ginger tea was almost finished as he ate the last piece of strawberry from his bowl. After Damian finished all his breakfast he set all his plates in the sink, he was prepared to clean up the dishes but was stopped by Pennyworth.

“Pennyworth, I can definitely clean up my own mess,” Damian tried to argue.

“Now, Master Damian, I have everything under control. Run along,” Pennyworth told him as he waved him off.

Damian nodded at him and started walking off. He still needed to go to his room and grab some medicine. As he left he could feel Drake eyes on him.

Down the hall passing his room, he walked to the library. Looking under the same red book, that hid all his sketches. He looked down at Grayson’s drawing, he had a complete outline and needed to do some coloring as well as some corrections before it could be perfect. As he gave one last glance at the drawing he put it aside satisfied with what he had done for now.

Drake was the next person he needed to decide what to draw. Damian could admit they weren’t as close as he was to Grayson, they went from mutual hatred to begrudging acceptance of each other's presence. Which was one of the reasons he struggled deciding what to draw for him. Drake's parents were not good people, they did not deserve to be drawn by him. He also did not know about Drake preferences. Perhaps he should ask Grayson for some advice. Damian shook his head as he dismissed that idea, knowing it would spoil Grayson's surprise for him. The only thing Damian knew for certain was that Drake enjoyed photography. After all, that was how he found out about his father and Grayson’s idea.

Damian stood up, his stomach protesting from the sudden movement, as an idea struck him. He looked over at all his picture references, he tossed some aside as he found what he was looking for. There in his hands, was the picture of his father and Drake in costumes from the first time they went on patrol. He smiled looking at it thinking he had the perfect idea what to draw for Drake.

After staring at the picture for a few more seconds, he started picking out the utensils he needed to get the project done. The charcoal stood out to him as he grabbed it, he looked over the rest of the utensils and grabbed his watercolors paints. He stared at both at his options, lifting the charcoal up and then setting it down, he did the same with the watercolor. A huff escape him as he messed up his hair.

In a flash his hands went to his mouth as he felt his stomach flip and nausea hit him in full force. He ran to the bathroom in the corner slamming the door open. Damian barely made it to the toilet before he spilled his breakfast in the bowl. The force of the gag had him tearing up as the wretched smell of vomit filled the tiny room. He continued to empty the contents of his stomach until there was nothing else. Still, he gagged and dry heaved as his nausea got worse with the smell. When his vomiting finally halted, Damian cleaned his chin with the back of his wrist, as he took deep breath trying to control his breathing.

He didn’t know _why_ that just happened, but he was sure it had nothing to do with Pennyworth’s food.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thanks for reading my story! Please leave a comment and kudos! I really appreciate those and it really makes my day! Thank to the wonderful Cdelphiki who betaread this chapter, if your here you probably already know her work, If not definitely check her out she amazingly talented. Come ask me questions on tumblr @brokenhearted-queen


	6. Chapter 6

None of this was making sense to Damian. There was no reason for him to be feeling sick. He knew that he had not been in contact with someone who was ill. 

Damian stood up from the floor, and started rubbing his eyes and made his way to the sink. Turning on the sink, he cupped his hands under the running water and brought some water to his mouth. After rinsing his mouth from the awful taste of vomit, Damian turned on the bathroom extractor. He turned on the candle in the bathroom, just in case.

As he made his way back to his work, he wondered what was happening. He looked down at his materials, and he gently took them and put them in his hiding spot. In the state that he was, his art would reflect poorly on his artistic capabilities. Shoulders slumped, letting a huge sigh, Damian made his way to his room. 

The only thing Damian wished to do was to finish his Christmas gifts for his family. At this rate he wouldn’t be able to get it down by then. Damian let out a small growl as he kicked the chair in front of him. It moved back and forth, until it tumbled to the ground with a bang. Damian clicked his tongue as he bent down and rearranged the chair forcibly. 

Damian's mind drifted back to last night and remember that Drake told him to call Grayson. Perhaps they could plan another meet up and this time he would be sure not to fall asleep. Even though he managed to get some rest he still felt exhausted. That's all he felt the last few days, he needed to rearrange his schedule once more. Maybe change the vitamins that he was taking. If he was going to change his vitamins he should start getting together his vitamins regimen for his family.

For Drake he knew to avoid any vitamin that contained caffeine. His brother definitely required some Vitamin D and Melatonin, this would assist him with getting some rest. He should add Vitamin A as well. It would help strengthen his immune system. Todd would also benefit from those vitamins, but he would need some calcium as well. Now, for Grayson he would require a different regimen. 

His eyebrow furrowed as he remembered that Drake told him to call Grayson. Not that he had to do anything that Drake told him to do. Last time he did what Drake told him to do, he ended up getting grounded. It was not his fault that Red Robin got hurt, he told him his plan was foolish before they left. But he was the one to get grounded over not following orders. Damian shook his head, refocused on his task and dialed Grayson’s number. It rang four times until he heard Grayson's cheerful voice.

“Hey Dami!” 

“Hello Grayson, how is your morning?” Damian asked as he leaned against the wall in the hallway.

“My morning...was fine.” Grayson told him, sounding slightly confused. “I’m actually preparing some dinner now.”

Oh, it was already dinner time? Had so much time already passed? He would need to get ready for patrol soon. 

“Yes, what are you preparing? I do not wish to tell Pennyworth that you burned down your kitchen over your cooking adventure,” Damian told him with a slight smirk.

“Yeah, yeah, this is a pretty simple recipe. Alfie actually taught me it, so nothing for you to worry about,” Grayson said, his voice sounding muffled in the other end.

“Worried? Please do not be ridiculous Grayson. Drake told me you wanted to speak to me,” Damian said getting to the point. He did not want to get distracted once more.

“Right, since someone fell asleep during our movie night, I wanted to reschedule for a new one. Maybe we could even invite Jason this time,” Grayson said while he muttered a small ‘ouch’.

Damian's cheek heated up as he remembered the events of last night, feeling his stomach tying in knots. At least Grayson was still interested in having a movie night again. Even if he had to suffer thru Drake and Todd’s company. He wondered if they would allow him to pick the movie once again. Damian was certain that Todd would pick a movie just to annoy them, not because they were enjoyable. He believed that Grayson’s movie choices were worse, as they were always meant to teach him a lesson. Perhaps, Drake would be the one choosing, his choices were decent at least. 

“Damian?” Grayson's voice sounded on the other line. 

“Yes, Grayson?” He asked, as he did not hear anything that his brother told him.

“When do you want to meet?” Grayson said softly.

Damian let out sigh as he started to glide down the hallway wall until he was sitting down. His shoulders slumped as his grip tightened on his phone.  
“I am unsure what would be a good time, after all I am not the only one you plan to invite,” Damian could not help the bitterness that creeped into his voice.

“Dami, come on-” Grayson tried to interject but Damian cut him off.

“I believe it will be best if you talk to the others and inform me what decision you come to. I’ll see you then.” Damian said as he hung up before Grayson could respond.

He set the phone on the floor next to him, as he took a deep breath as he put his face in his hands. Damian put pressure on his head. It was foolished for him to be upset with Grayson, he knew that Grayson would invite everyone else as well. It would not be fair for Damian to manipulate all of his brother's time. 

“This is ridiculous,” Damian muttered to himself as he grabbed his phone.

As soon as he stood up he felt his balance go off, he held onto the wall as he regained his balance. He headed downstairs, thinking that he should prepare for patrol soon.

“Master Damian,” Pennyworth said as he appeared behind Damian.

“Yes, Pennyworth?”

“It is time for dinner. Master Drake is waiting for you in the dining room,” Pennyworth said as he looked expectantly at him.

Damian did not want to see Drake at all. He already felt tired and further interaction with Drake would just leave him exhausted. He was not even hungry enough to make seeing Drake worth it.

“I appreciate your offer, Pennyworth. But I am not hungry,” Damian told him as he turned around to leave.

“I did not see you at lunch, Master Damian,” Pennyworth said and it made Damian stop. Pennyworth was right, but Damian couldn’t deal with everything that was happening. Was it too much to ask for time to draw? Damian couldn’t help but wonder.

“No, you did not,” Damian simply said and made his way to the cave.

He had to get ready for patrol, his father would arrive home from work soon. Today’s patrolling schedule would be Robin, Batman and Red Hood. Red Robin was going to be the one on coms, and Damian hoped that he won’t be annoying. He was already suffering from a headache so there was no reason to make it worse.

As soon as he arrived at the cave he got ready and waited for his father to get there. He was actually looking forward to spending some time with his father tonight.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey guy! So sorry I am so late, I am in the last few week of my bachelors as well of had some family issues and wasn't able to focus on this chapter. Things are getting serious! I am aiming to have another chapter up Friday! Things are getting serious! Love kudos! Your comments honestly make my day! Thanks to Cdelphiki once again! She betaread this chapter like all the previous chapter she honestly the best. Find me at tumblr @brokenhearted-queen


	7. Chapter 7

Jason wanted to say he was surprised, really.

But who was he kidding?

There was no reason for Red Hood to be working with Robin. He had a reputation to uphold after all. Batman basically ditched Damian and left Jason with a grumpy Demon Brat. Which was fucking great, exactly how he wanted to spend the night. 

He could feel Damian glare at him. Jason was trying his best to ignore him. Both of them were supposed to be staking out some building. They had a perfect view from the roof of the building across it. Batman believed there were some drug deals going on, Red Hood on the other hand, thought Bruce just wanted to work on the serial killer case alone. 

Red Hood looked at Robin and couldn’t help the twinge of worry he felt for the kid. Yeah, he was grumpy over Batman being an overprotective asshole, but he looked so tired. Even with his domino mask, Jason could tell. 

The way Robin carried himself with hunched shoulders and every so often he would put his binoculars down to rub his eyes really showed how exhausted he was. He must not be getting much sleep, Jason thought to himself.

“You tired, Robin?” Red Hood asked.

Robin flinched at the sound of his voice, then huffed, “Don’t be absurd, Hood,” as he stood up and dropped the binoculars on the group.

“Please, Robin, I may be many things but stupid ain’t one of them. Doesn’t take a great detective to tell you are not at hundred percent,” Jason drawl as he stood up and walked behind Robin. Screw the nonexisting drug deals, he wanted to know what was in Demon Brat’s head. 

“I never implied that you were stupid,” Damian grumbled as he crossed his arms over his chest. 

Jason could tell Robin was pouting, the kid could be cute sometimes. Mostly, annoying but he had his moments.

“Then come on, spill the beans, tell Hood what’s keeping you up at night. Is it the monster under your bed,” Jason said in a teasing tone. 

He saw Damian's body go rigid and his hand tighten into fist beside him. Hood hummed as he noticed he had hit a sore spot. Robin was already grumpy and here Red Hood made it worse.

“Stop being ridiculous, Hood! There no such thing as monster unde-”

Damian stopped in the middle of his sentence. Robin looked confused for a moment as he put his arm out. A second later Jason saw Damian start to fall. Jason ran and was completely surprised that he was able to catch him before he made contact with the ground.

What the fuck?

What. The. Fuck?

Did the kid just pass out?

“Robin!” He called out as he pat Robin's cheek, trying to get him to open his eyes. 

“Come on, Robin, you need to wake up right this second. Come on, come on,” Jason kept saying over and over. Until he heard a small groan, and Damian started to stand up.

“Wait, don’t stand, sit down. Jesus, kid you just gave me a heart attack. Bid Bird ain’t going to be happy if I told him you died on my watch. Especially since you just came back!” Jason said as he helped Damian sit down and the brat kept insisting that he was fine.

“I am alright, Hood. Stop fussing,” Robin insisted as he pushed Jason's arms away.

“What the hell just happened?” Jason demanded as he kept a hand on Damian shoulders forcing him to stay put.

Jason had his own theory, the kid probably just passed out because he was exhausted. Something was probably keeping up at night and Jason had a feeling he knew what it was.

“I simply...lost my balance for a moment,” Damian said, sounding unsure.

“That’s bullshit and you know it,” Jason snapped at him.

“No, I lost my footing,” Damian insisted as he crossed his arm.

“If you don’t tell me what just happened, I’m gonna tell Batman,” 

“What? No! That extortion!” Damian yelled as he stood up.

“Ain’t extortion if there is something wrong. You either tell B or me, your choice,” Jason said as he put his hand on his shoulder, just to have Damian shrug him off.

“Fine, I do not want to be benched because of this,” Damian said and Jason could tell he was pouting.

“That depends on your answer, if you’re sick you shouldn’t be here,” Jason said, as he tried to reason with Damian.

“I am not ill...I have not eaten all day,” Damian said with a nonchalant tone. 

Jason, on the other hand, was shocked. He knew Damian was smarter than that. They all needed to eat before patrol, with all the jumping around they do, everyone needed as much energy as they could get.

“You’re fucking with me…” Jason trailed off. Damian looked down as he started rubbing his hands together.

“No...I was not hungry, I did not believe it would have such a strong affect,” Damian admitted as he looked at Jason.

Jason could tell that Damian was telling the truth. But that didn’tt mean he didn’t do something stupid. The way Damian carried himself tonight made it seem like something beside not eating was happening. Jason wanted to push for more answers, but he knew the Brat wouldn’t talk to him. 

“Well, we are going to fix that right now,” Jason said with a newfound determination, he picked up his communicator.

“Hey Replacement, Robin and I have not seen any activity here, we taking a food break,” Red Hood said through his communicator. 

“Copy that, Hood. I’ll give you a call if something comes up.” Jason heard Tim’s voice on the other hand.

“Sounds good,” Jason said as he finished talking to Tim. He looked over at Damian. “Come on, twerp, we are going get some burgers.”

Damian looked at him confused for a moment. 

“I am a vegetarian,” Damian said, as he stared at Jason.

“Yeah, yeah, I know, you can have a veggie burger and fries. Maybe a milkshake if you're a good boy,” Jason said, his voice taking a teasing tone.

Damian scowled at him and then jumped to the building next to him. Jason assumed he was making his way to the restaurant. He let him have a headstart as he took his phone out and made a quick call.

The phone rang four times, before Dick picked up.

“Hi, Nightwing, I think you should call Robin, somethings up."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hi everyone! Hope you enjoying the story! I'm having a blast writing this! I love reading your writing and I appreciate all your kudos! Thanks Cdelphiki for being my betareader! She the best! Poor Damian, its getting rough for him. Find me at tumblr @brokenhearted-queen


	8. Chapter 8

Dick did not expect Jason’s call, but ever since he got it he has been worried. It was alarming to get a call from Jason that something was wrong with Damian. If someone was going to call him over Damian's mental health, he expected it to be Bruce, not only was he Damian’s dad but he actually lived with him. On the other hand, Dick knew how emotionally constipated B could be. 

He wanted to call Bruce after he finished talking with Jason, especially when Jason expressed his worry about Damian possibly feeling the effects of being resurrected, but he decided against telling Bruce just yet. Dick needed more information before he talked to Bruce.

Dick’s heart broke when he heard that Damian was suffering from night terrors. He didn’t want Damian to be suffering alone, but he knew that Damian’s upbringing made it hard for him to ask for help. Especially since Dick moved to Bludhaven, he was busier than usual and Damian did not reach out often. Dick needed to talk to someone who sees Damian on a daily basis. That's why he needed to talk to Tim, he grabbed his phone and dialed Tim’s number. Tim picked up the phone on the third dial.

“Hi, Tim,” Dick said, trying to keep his voice cheerful.

“Hey, Dick, what’ up?” Tim replied sounding kind of distracted. Dick’s eyebrows furrowed as he looked at the time. 

“I wanted to talk to you, are you busy?” Dick said as he made his way to the kitchen. He needed to get dinner ready.

“Uhh...yeah, I’m working on the serial killer case. Damian was supposed to help me, but he fell asleep,” Tim whined slightly, sounding tired himself.

Dick stopped halfway from getting his pasta, surprised to hear that Damian fell asleep when he was supposed to be helping Tim. As much as Damian complained about spending time together with Tim, he always helped him when asked.

“Oh? That's unusual,” Dick said as he went and picked up the pasta. He needed to boil some water.

“I don’t think he's been sleeping much. He always looks tired.”

“Really? You know, Jason mentioned something to me a fews days ago...I was wondering if we could meet up tomorrow for lunch and see if you notice something else.” Dick said as he dropped his pasta in the water. It wasn’t boiling yet, but it should be fine.

“Yeah, sure, that’s fine. Hey, I gotta go, Damian’s waking up and I want to ask him some questions,” Tim said quickly as he hung up.

Dick looked at his phone and shrugged. He would get his answers tomorrow, hopefully Tim could answer them all. 

He needs to finish his pasta, before going to work.

__

Dick made his way to the small diner that Tim enjoyed. He had to admit he was slightly worried about what Tim would say. It would break his heart to know if Damian was having a hard time with his resurrection, but if it was true, they could work together to help him. Talking to Tim would be the first step.

He walked in the diner to see Tim already waiting for him. Tim did seem tired, with his ruffled hair and dark circles, but he looked better than the last time Dick saw him.

“Timmy!” Dick said excitedly as he went to give his brother a hug. Tim smiled at him and returned his hug.

“You ordered already?” Dick asked as he sat down and picked up the menu.

“Nah, I was waiting for you. I didn’t want you to whine about eating by yourself,” Tim said, as he gave Dick a small smirk. 

“Oh come on, I wouldn't whine...I would just express my utter disappointment of you eating by yourself when I’m the one paying,” Dick said while flashing a grin.

“You’re paying? Uh, let me get a breakfast platter then,” Tim said with a huge smile that made Dick roll his eyes.

“It’s not like we can’t afford that,” Dick said, his tone exasperated. 

“Yeah, yeah, just tell Linda what you want so she can continue to work,” Tim said as he called Linda over and they placed their orders. 

“That’ll be out for you soon, sweetheart,” Linda said smiling, she walked away to place their orders.

“Now, what do you want to talk about?” Tim said as he took a sip of his coffee.

Dick sighed as his shoulders slumped. He rubbed the back of his neck as he tried to figure out how to start. If anything, he could simply state his worry, but Dick didn’t want to offend Tim if he didn’t see anything. After all, is not like Bruce was the one to call Dick and tell him something was wrong. 

“I wanted to talk to you about Damian,” Dick said, as he added sugar to his coffee. 

“Oh, you want to talk about him acting weird?” 

Dick eyes widened at Tim bluntness, but he was proud Tim noticed Damian not acting like himself. He did feel guilty over the fact that both Jason and Tim knew something was happening with Damian while he was blind to it.

“Yeah...Jason mentioned that he was worried about him. Something happened during their shift while patrolling, he didn’t want to tell me what exactly happened but he shared his theory,” Dick explained as he ripped apart the napkins, giving his hands something to do.

“Hmm, he's looking more exhausted than usual, gets distracted very easily. He hasn’t eaten much these last few days, not that I have seen at least-” Tim was interrupted when Linda came back and put their food down on the table. She went away as soon as they thanked her.

Dick looked at his pancakes and started poking it with his fork. This is all unusual for Damian, no wonder Jason was worried. 

“You've seen him more than I do. Do you have any idea why he's acting like this?” Dick said, Tim looked up at him. As Tim picked up a piece of toast and took a bite of it. Dick waited for a second until Tim gave him a shrug,

“I’m not a doctor or anything, but he is showing symptoms of depression. Not uncommon in those who came back to life,” Tim said as he took a stab at the bacon and put it in his mouth.

Dick let out a sigh, he wanted to say he was surprised by what Tim said. But Jason told him the same thing during their phone call. Jason at least assumed that Damian was suffering from night terrors. Now, with Tim's theory they could make a game plan.

“Jason thinks it is night terrors. I’ll have to have a talk with Damian to see what we can do to help,” Dick said, as he took his hot chocolate and swirled it around.

“I’m keeping an eye on the little punk, but I know he misses you. He was talking about making a vitamins schedule for us. Damian spent like an hour on the computers looking at vitamins before he fell asleep. That was when he was supposed to be helping me with the case, but the Demon Brat is actually kinda cute when he sleeps,” Tim grumbled the last part as if getting those words out physically pained him. Dick couldn’t help laugh at him, Damian did have a cute side to him.

“Thanks for keeping an eye on him,” Dick said sincerely, as he ate some more.

“Oh, come on. As much as the brat annoys me, he is my little brother, I don’t want to miss that chance a second time,” Tim admitted, as he fiddled with his watch.

Dick understood what Tim was saying, it was hard on them when they lost Damian. Everyone had their regrets and they had to live with them. Now, there was no time for any regrets.

“Don’t worry, Tim. I’ll talk to him, everything will be just fine,” Dick assured, as he put his hand on top of Tim's hand.

Tim hand gripped his, as he looked up and gave him a smile.

They were going to help Damian, together as a family.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thanks all! Hope you all enjoy this chapter! I am graduating this Friday! So excited! I love reading all your comments and appreciate all your kudos. What you guys think of Dick chapter? It was interesting writing him again. You can look me up on tumblr @brokenhearted-queen, I would love to answer any questions or just for a chat! Thanks Cdelphiki once again for being my betareader!


	9. Chapter 9

Damian's body was extremely sore. He would flinch with every step he took. The pain compared to when he trained nonstop with the League, but Damian was careful with his training. He learned the dangers of overworking his body from Grayson. Honestly, Damian had not been training as often as he should. Too tired, his never ending headaches, his lack of energy, all reasons to avoid his training. It's not like Damian needed the additional training. He was already skilled enough.

He couldn’t remember the last time he didn’t suffer from his headache. Perhaps it was three weeks ago? Damian shook his head, he hoped his vitamins took effect soon. Either way, Damian had to get some progress done on his drawings before Grayson arrived. 

It was not a surprise for Damian to receive a call from Grayson. They hadn’t talked since their failed attempt at scheduling movie night. He knew that Grayson would want to speak to him soon, or at least he hoped he wanted to. What surprised Damian, was the fact that Grayson scheduled time to spend some brother bonding time, just the two of them. After the previous attempt included all his brothers, Damian was extremely pleased. He missed Grayson and he did not believe he would be able to handle everyone's energy. It would be a struggle for him to handle Grayson’s energy by itself..

Titus followed him as he made his way to the library. It had become a place of comfort, as well as a hideout from his family. These last few days he noticed both Pennyworth and Drake pestering him about eating more. It annoyed Damian, especially since he was having a hard time keeping it down. Just the mere thought of food brought a new wave of nausea. 

He did not believe that his lack of eating was dire enough for Pennyworth to be worried. Damian was more confused over the fact that Drake was being so driven on getting him to eat more. It was not Drake's business whether he ate or not. Damian knew that his eating habits did not affect Drake in any way . He hoped that their foolishness would cease soon as he did not want to keep retreating to the library. If they found him in the library, Damian feared that they might stumble into him drawing. He did not want to spoil their gifts. Grayson had told him the importance of keeping Christmas gifts a secret. 

When he arrived at the library, Damian headed straight to the books that hid his sketches. He already had the rough ideas of what he wanted to do for Grayson and Drake. While the sketches were just the first phase of the art process, he felt very confident about what he was going to create. Now, he needed to decide whose sketch came next.

Damian picked three blank pieces of paper and spread them out. He leaned over and scribbled a word on each paper. In the corner of the first paper, Damian put Todd. On the second one he simply put Father, and the last paper he put Pennyworth.

He looked back and forth between the papers and pushed the one labeled Father away. Damian knew this one would be the one he struggled with the most. He knows his father is very hard to please. No matter what Damian does, he will doubt himself and his work just because it was for his father. His will be the one that will take up the most time and Damian wanted it to look perfect.

That only left him with Todd and Pennyworth. Damian looked down at his options and started rubbing his forehead. He felt Titus' snout against his side, pushing into his stomach. Damian huffed as he petted Titus and his dog began to whine. Damian couldn’t help and chuckle in amusement.

“Honestly Titus, I am trying to work. Go sit,” Damian told Titus and once again his dog let out a whine but obeyed his order.

“That was an excellent job, Titus,” Damian complimented as he pushed aside the paper labeled as Pennyworth. He knew Pennyworth deserved his best work too and that required more concentration that his headache would lend.

Not that Todd deserved subpar work, but he already knew what he wanted to draw for Pennyworth. Today he would simply decide what he wanted to draw for Todd. He didn’t know Todd as well but he knew that he cared for his older brother. Todd, while hostile at times, cared for him. At least that is what Damian believed.

If Todd didn’t care he wouldn’t have gotten him food on patrol last time. Damian still felt embarrassed over the fact that he fainted over the lack of food. He had spent longer without food with no issues. But no, Damian had to faint on patrol in front of Red Hood. He felt very childish about the entire situation. One thing that Damian was thankful for was the fact that Todd did not tell anyone about his little mishap. At least, that's what he assumed as no one brought it up afterwards. 

Damian smiled softly as he felt the trust he held for his brother grow and he felt hopeful for their relationship in the future,

He looked down at the paper as an idea started to form in his head. Todd's relationship was still rekindling his relationship with their family. But Damian knew about his relationship with both the alien named Starfire and the archer known by Roy. Damian felt that he could make a small portrait featuring all three of them. The only setback is that he required a picture of Todd’s friends as he wanted to be accurate as possible.

The question now was where will Damian get these photos. Perhaps he could search in the Batcomputer. Or perhaps he should ask Pennyworth.

He needed to speak to Pennyworth. Damian had to ask him to implement the vitamin program for both Father and Drake. He also had some suggestions for Pennyworth, but he knew that Pennyworth was no fool with his health.

Damian groaned as he looked at the ceiling. He was ignoring Pennyworth at the moment. As he did not want to eat and he knew Pennyworth would force him to.

Once again, Damian felt exhausted and weak. Looking down at his paperwork and utensils he started to clean up. At this point even art felt like it required too much of his energy.

Titus came back and started grabbing Damian's shirt and pulling. Damian grunted as he patted Titus' head.

“Kneel,” Damian said as Titus continued to pull at him. He felt a twinge of annoyance when Titus ignored him. Letting out a huffed he push at Titus snout, being careful as not to harm him. 

“Come on, boy. Kneel,” Damian tried again.

Titus ignored him and kept pulling at him. Damian let out a sigh and glared down at Titus.

“Okay, I’ll follow you,” Damian grumbled as he let his dog pull him toward the couch in the corner of the library. 

As soon as they arrived at the couch Titus pushed him down and laid on top of him. Damian couldn’t help but laugh at his dog.

“You are such a sloth, Titus. Did you just want to rest?” Damian asked as he rubbed Titus' ears. Titus' response was to lick Damian’s face.

“Okay Titus, just for a while. I need to prepare for my movie night with Grayson,” Damian mumbled as he let his exhaustion win and fell asleep.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hi guys! It's been a while! I had the worse writing block and some personal issues but here it is! Thanks to my friend Winston for Betareading for me! I also updates my Fading Series if you want to check that out! I basically expanded on a one shot so I'm super excited! I love your kudos and comments! Look forward to read them! Find me at tumblr at brokenhearted-queen!


	10. Chapter 10

Damian was startled awake by someone shaking his shoulders. He gasped and tried to reach for his knife, when he remembered that he didn’t sleep with his knife anymore. The manor was supposed to be his safe place. There shouldn’t be a reason for Damian to carry a knife everywhere. Everyone in the manor was able to defend themselves. Even Pennyworth was very formidable. 

When Damian opened his eyes after a flash of panic and saw Grayson standing over him with his eyebrows furrowed, Damian thought he looked worried...or perhaps annoyed? He couldn’t really tell. After a moment he reached down to pet Titus, but he was nowhere to be seen. 

Damian wondered how much time has passed since he fell asleep. He had to assume it was a long time if Grayson already arrived for their movie night. There were many tasks he wanted to complete before Grayson arrived. Damian wanted to make snacks, he needed to take Titus for a walk. Perhaps that is why Titus wasn’t with him anymore. Pennyworth probably was the one who took him out on his walk.

“-mian...Damian!” Grayson's voice rose as he shook Damian’s shoulders. 

Grayson’s voice startled him, Damian blinked and looked at Grayson. He hadn’t heard him at all, too lost in his thoughts. There he went again getting distracted, Damian needed to get himself together.

“Hello, Grayson. It is a pleasure to see you,” Damian said as he sat up.

“Hi, Dami...I was getting worried when I couldn’t find you. But Alfred told me you were sleeping in here,” Grayson said as he gave him a small smile.

“Ah yes...I was resting with Titus but it seems I was abandoned by him,” Damian mumbled as he stood up. As soon as he stood up, a wave of nausea and dizziness hit him. He needed to stretch out his arms to regain his balance.

He saw Grayson leaned forward to help Damian steady himself. Damian pushed Grayson's hands, not needing his help. 

“I am fine, Grayson. I simply stood up too quickly,” Damian lied as he regained his balance.

“If you say so,” Grayson responded dubiously. 

Damian simply grunted and started walking away from Grayson. He didn’t expect Grayson to be acting oddly. There was no reason for Grayson to be worried about him, at least not that he has been a witness off. 

“Dami, what movie do you want to watch? I was thinking of Aristocats...I think you would love that movie,” Grayson saidas he followed Damian out of the room. Damian eyebrows furrowed as he tried to remember if he had heard of this movie before. He believed that he had before, one of the movies that Drake recommended. But Damian couldn’t remember the details that Drake told him about the movie.

“If that is what you wish to watch, Grayson. I trust your judgement...to a certain extent , you have only failed me a few times. I still do not understand your obsession with the Bee Movie,” Damian said with a shudder.

“Oh come on, Lil D! That is a complete classic!” Grayson exclaimed as he put his arm around Damian’s shoulders.

“I certainly would not consider a movie such as that a ‘classic’-“ Damian said as he made air quotes.

“Well I do! But I swear that you will like Aristocats. It has your favorite things: animals, music and attempted murder,” Grayson said grinning as he counted off on he fingers.

“That will be acceptable,” Damian said as he pushed Grayson off his shoulders. His body was sore and Grayson all over him was not helpful.

They made their way to the living room. Grayson chatting away about his time in the police force as well as his nightly activity as Nightwing.

Damian tried to concentrate on what Grayson was saying, but his attention kept drifting to other things. One second Grayson was talking about this perp that he arrested and then he was talking about how Drake fell when trying to imitate Grayson flip. In hindsight, Drake shouldn’t be trying to imitate Grayson flips, he knew he made them extremely difficult when betting was involved.

As they arrived at the living room Grayson sat down and pulled Damian down to sit right next to him. Damian found himself feeling dizzy once again. Damian glared at Grayson as his dizziness went down. 

Grayson smiled at him as he pulled Damian closer to him in an attempt to cuddle. Damian grunted in annoyance. Grayson always enjoyed cuddling during movie nights. Everyone always complained about being squeezed and coddled by him. Damian will always complain, pretending that he didn’t enjoy it. Now, Damian simply felt too tired to act otherwise, he leaned over and simply enjoyed the comfort his brother offered him. Grayson started the movie and Damian let himself relax against his brother.

The movie was very interesting, at least the parts that Damian could focus on. Music was extremely enjoyable and he actually found the character pleasant. He will have to rewatch it one day, perhaps he could get Alfred the cat to stay and watch it with him. Damian thought Alfred the cat would enjoy the movie as well, simply because there were cats involved. 

He was startled out of his thoughts when Grayson reached out and touched his shoulder.

“You totally like the movie, right?” Grayson asked, as he gave him a small smirk.

“It was an adequate movie,” Damian confirmed while he rubbed his forehead as he felt the dual twinge from his headache increase.

“Dami…” Grayson started looking extremely nervous. 

“Yes, Grayson?” Damian inquired, starting to feel nervous himself.

“Well...Jason called me a few days ago and he told me…” Grayson hesitated slightly as he rubbed his neck.

“Jason told me he was worried about you…” Grayson finished as he looked up at Damian and reached to grab his hand.

Damian pulled back, feeling betrayed. He believed that Todd would not tell anyone about what happened during patrol. Damian thought he could trust him, but here he was telling everyone his weakness.

“Excuse me?” Damian asked, hoping he had heard wrong.

“Dami, you can trust us. If you need someone to talk to...I’m here,” Grayson startled, making his voice soft. It reminded Damian of when he spoke to a spook child.

Damian did not know how to respond. He was being treated as an injured child.  
“What are you saying, Grayson?” He said, glaring at his brother.

“We all know how challenging our night job is. If you need additional help to cope with anything we are all here,” Grayson told him, giving him a reassuring smile.

Damian blinked at Grayson in shock. Did he believe that Damian was mentally weak? Is that why Grayson invited him to watch a movie? Grayson only wanted to question his mental stability? Damian was fool to believe his older brother wanted to spend some alone time with him.

“I am not weak,” Damian snarled as he stood up. A wave of nausea and dizziness hit him once again making him stumble on his feet.

Grayson stood up and tried to help Damian stabilize himself. Damian's head started pounding as he pushed his brother away from him. 

“Do not touch me,” He hissed as raising his voice would agitate his already sensitive headache.

Damian walked away ignoring his brother's call. He was too exhausted to defend himself and to deal with his brother's misguided worries.

He rubbed his face as a few tears of frustration leaked from his eyes. Damian could not believe Todd betrayed him like that. 

As he walked through the manor he made his way to his room. When he arrived he quickly closed his door. Damian put his back against the door and slid down until he was sitting down. He raised his hand to put his fingers through his hair, when he noticed them shaking.

Damian tried to make them stop, he tense his arms as he tried to close his fingers into a fist. Instead of stopping, his fingers continued to shake. Damian put his shaking fingers against his face as he began to cry.

What was wrong with him? Why isn't he getting better?

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey everyone! Surprised early chapter! Everyone understanding about my disappearance and nice comments fuel my writing spirit! I felt like I got attacked by a swarmed of writing bugs. Thanks to Cdelphiki for betareading for me! She is amazing and you should check her work! Find me at tumblr brokenhearted-queen! Thank you all for the kudos and I look forward to your thoughts about this chapter!


	11. Chapter 11

Damian knew that he needed to eat. He had patrol and needed the extra energy. The problem Damian had is that he could not keep food down. He was surviving on liquids and fulfilling what nutrients he needed with vitamins. Even though Damian met all of his nutrition requirements, he felt weak and nauseous at all times. 

Over the last few days, Damian was ignoring both Grayson and Todd. After Grayson talked to him about his weakness, Damian couldn’t help feeling betrayed by both of his brothers. Todd betrayed him by telling his oldest brother about what happened during patrol and Grayson for thinking that he was weak.

He knew if he approached Grayson he would try to talk to him about his feelings. Damian did not believe because he was feeling physically unwell, that he was weak minded. At this moment, Damian thought that him feeling physically unwell does not affect anyone else. He could still perform his duty as Robin and he was not bothering anyone.

Walking over to his bed, Damian began pushing it to the left. He began counting the wooden planks. When he got to the third plank he stopped, forgetting for a moment which plank he had hidden his rations. Damian scrubbed his face tiredly as he sighed and began counting out loud.

“...Three, four,” he said as he pushed the fourth wooden plank and nothing happened. 

His eyebrow furrowed as he looked confused at the wooden plank. Damian thought it was the fourth plank, perhaps it was the six plank?

“Five...six,” Damian tried again nothing happened. 

He made a mistake once again. Damian was not used to making the same mistake twice. His headache was becoming worse as time passed. 

“Oh,” Damian said simply as he remembered it was supposed to be the seventh plank.

Once he got his hidden chest of supplies, he started looking at what was left. His supplies were looking sparse, his pain medication down to the last four pills. Damian would need to restock soon, he knew if he started asking Pennyworth for some medication, he would raise suspicion.

Damian didn’t want to be removed from patrol. He still needed to prove his worth to his family. There were many people who needed Robin’s protection and he needed to help keep his family safe.

His head was throbbing and he started to put pressure on his forehead. He swallowed two pills and stood up. 

“I need food,” Damian reminded himself as he walked out and made his way to the kitchen.

Making his way to the kitchen he wondered what he would eat. Nothing with milk as it will definitely disturb his stomach. Perhaps a soup with a strong broth? Damian thought to himself as he arrived at the kitchen. In the kitchen he could see both Drake and Pennyworth, Drake was at the table eating before patrol. Or at least Damian thought it was before patrol...he is not sure who is in the schedule tonight. Damian only knew for certain that he was supposed to patrol today.

Drake was supposed to be working on the serial killer case. They have been working on figuring out a motive. Stabbed victims left to bleed out to death slowly, most of them dying in the hospital. That did not make sense to Damian, why would they target people with B-negative blood type? 

“Master Damian,” Pennyworth called out to him, snapping out of his thoughts.

“Yes, Pennyworth?” Damian replied as he looked over at Pennyworth and saw him cooking.

“I am preparing you a vegetarian celery soup, with cashews instead of milk. It will be done in just a moment. Take a seat, Master Damian,” Pennyworth said as he stirred the soup.

Damian nodded not wanting to offend the butler. He walked over and sat in front of Drake, who simply nodded at him.

“Are you patrolling tonight?” Damian asked after a moment of stifling silence. 

“Nop,” Drake answered as he made a popping sound. “Going out today is Nightwing, Batman, Red Hood and well you. Oracle is going to be on coms tonight.” 

“Thank you,” Damian replied as he fidgeted with his fingers and waited for Pennyworth to finish making his soup. 

His mind trailed back to the serial killer case and wondered what could be a possible motive. The killer would only target people with a rare blood type, leaving them to bleed out. It couldn’t be organ trafficking as they did not take any organs. The attacks were calculated in a way that let the victim to bleed out. What puzzled Damian the most was the fact that while the victim did bleed out, the cuts were not done aggressively, but with precision. 

Damian looked up suddenly, feeling his head swim for a second.

“Drake,” Damian said loudly.

“Yeah?” He answered while he raised an eyebrow in a questioning manner.

“Have you looked at medical professionals for possible suspects for the serial killer?” Damian demanded as he stood up and started pacing.

“No, why?” Drake asked as he looked confused for a moment.

“The cuts-” Damian said as he raised his voice slightly “-the cuts were precise, clean. Done knowing that the victim would bleed out!” He finished as he panted slightly.

Drake looked up at him as his eyes widened. Before he was able to respond Pennyworth cleared his throat loudly.

“Master Damian, your soup is ready. You must finish quickly if you wish to prepare to go on patrol,” Pennyworth voice stated as he put Damian’s soup where he was sitting moments before.

Damian nodded as he sat down and stirred the soup with his spoon. He was not feeling particularly hungry at this time. Damian could feel his stomach churned at the mere thought of eating the soup. He needed to eat, he knew that. But the feeling of nausea would not leave and he feared what would happen if he ate the soup. After he stirred the soup a few seconds more and started eating the soup.

As soon as he ate the first spoonful of soup, a burst of flavor exploded in Damian’s mouth. He smiled softly and continued to eat.

The soup was delicious.

_

Robin was having a hard time during patrol. Multiple criminals escaped Arkham, most of them lower level criminals. Damian had to be thankful that Joker did not escape, they did not want a Red Hood situation.

The team decided to spread out, to get control of the situation faster. Robin was paired off with Nightwing, but his older brother was running ahead of him, jumping between buildings at high speed, showing off his acrobatic skills.

Damian did not want to admit but he was having a difficult time keeping up with Grayson. He had to stop and take small breaks, as he was getting winded more often. 

He stopped briefly as he panted, gasping for breath. Robin felt as sweat started to drip down his face. His hand shaking slightly, Damian interlocked his fingers and raised it to his mouth. In an attempt to stop the shaking. 

Robin’s head was pounding, nausea and dizziness felt like a constant presence. Damian heard when Grayson called out to him to hurry up. He looked up to see that Grayson had already grappled to the building ahead of him. Robin sighed at Nightwing's comment. Grayson needed him, Batman needed Robin. He began running, stumbling at the start. 

As he ran he prepared his grappling hook, to hook it to the advertisement board located above the building he was aiming for. 

Damian jumped as he tried to aim his grappling hook, when a strong wave of dizziness hit him, messing up his aim. Instead of hooking the advertisement board, his hook was met with air. Robin knew he had made a mistake, his thoughts were consumed with panic.

He began to fall.

And.

Everything.

Turn.

Black.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hello everyone! Here is another chapter! I been feeling really motivated so third chapter in less than a week! Please ignore any grammar mistake, I'll go and fix them later. I was to impatient to wait for someone to betaread it XD. Please leave kudos and comments as they honestly fuel my writing spirit and I really love reading them! Come find me at tumblr @brokenhearted-queen!


	12. Chapter 12

Tim didn’t know how to feel about the new patrolling schedule. It gave them time to rest, but it felt odd not to be out every night. What he found most surprising was the fact that they even took their teams schedule into consideration. But Tim knew Alfred had always taken their health into consideration.

As he tapped his coffee mug with his pen, Tim's mind wandered to what Damian told him during dinner. 

He had considered that their serial killer was a professional, the cuts were done to make sure the victims died slowly. Tim believed it could have been a coroner or maybe a butcher. But someone with medical knowledge could have also been the killer.

Tim started to groan as he messed up his hair. That would mean that his suspect pool would have grown tremendously and unless they find more evidence or a motive as to why they were targeting people with B- blood type. 

After he added the notes to the file, he made his way to the living room. It was quiet in the manor and he wanted to take this opportunity to play with his gaming console. 

He stopped in the middle of the hallways when he realized that the manor has been quiet the last few weeks. Tim couldn’t remember when was the last time the manor was noisy. The manor has been quiet since Damian started acting odd. Tim had to admit that he started to miss the manor being full of noise. Currently, the silence felt suffocating.

As he continued his journey to the living room, Tim couldn’t help but worry about the youngest member of their family. Damian has always acted odd, mostly because of his murderous tendencies, but Tim knew that he was doing his best to better himself. Now, Damian acted like he was...Tim didn’t know how to explain it...maybe hollow?

Alfred and Tim were working together to make sure that Little Brat was eating something. Of course, the brat mostly listened to Alfred, but Tim didn’t take it to heart. He knew that they would have to talk to Bruce if it got worse. Tim doubted that Bruce noticed something wrong with Damian, he was too busy and had rarely been around the manor. 

Tim himself had only seen Bruce at Wayne Industries or during patrol. Damian probably only saw him during patrol. If Damian was actually depressed, then Bruce had to take some time to help Damian through it.  
At least Tim could get some comfort knowing that Dick was trying to help, and Tim would do what he could as well. He wanted to build up his relationship with Damian, which was why he was going to keep an eye on him.

For now though, he was going to fix up his island in his game.

-

Tim was playing for a few hours when he got called down to the cave. He rushed down when he heard that both Robin and Nightwing were injured. Alfred didn’t tell him much but that he needed help calming down Dick.

Did Damian get shot?

Or maybe there was a bomb and they got hurt?

How did they both get injured?

Many different scenarios passed through Tim’s mind as he raced down the cave stairs. When he arrived at the cave he wasn’t prepared for what he saw. 

As soon as he passed through the door he heard Dick yelling, he saw as Jason was restraining Dick as he screamed right back at him.

“Let me go! I need to make sure he's okay,” Dick yelled as he struggled against Jason.

“Come on Dick, he’s fine...Alfie’s making sure of it. You need to calm down!” Jason said as he grabbed Dick flapping arms.

“You don’t understand! Dami fell! He is hurt! I need to make sure he is okay. Let me go, let me go,” Dick started mumbling.

Tim could see Dick’s arms shaking as he mumbled that he needed to go to Damian. His breathing was hash, Tim could tell he was struggling to breath. Dick skin was pale, there was desperation in his eyes as he continued to struggle against Jason’s hold.

“What is happening?” Tim asked as he stared at the situation in shock.

“I need to go to Damian! Let me go, now! You don’t understand he fell, he fell,” Dick sobbed as he stopped squirming and let himself drop back against Jason's chest.

“It’s okay Dickie, you need to calm down before you can see Damian. Alfie taking care of him, he is fine. Let Timmie here check that wrist of yours,” Jason tried to soothe as he relaxed his hold. 

Tim looked at Dick until he nodded and raised his arm slightly. As soon as Tim saw his wrist he could tell that his wrist was dislocated. 

“Can you tell me what happened?” Tim asked as he grabbed a hold of the wrist in preparation of snapping it into place. 

“We were patrolling...I don’t know what happened, he was having trouble keeping up. Maybe I was rushing him…I told him to hurry up and I don’t know. Something happened with his grappling hook...and...he fell,” Dick said sobbing the last part.

Tim gasped as he heard about the events that took place. 

“Did he…?” Tim couldn’t even finish the sentence with the many horrible scenarios going through his mind.

“He hit his head on the way down, but Nightwing grabbed him before he hit the ground,” Jason explained.

Tim nodded as he snapped Dick wrist back into place. Besides a slight flinch, his older brother did not react and simply kept staring at the curtain. Behind it, Tim could see the shadow of Alfred working on Damian. 

Jason tried to console Dick, he told him Damian was fine. He kept telling Dick that as soon as he calmed down, he could see Damian and see that he was alright with his own eyes. Tim could see how Dick breathing started to settle. He knew Dick was in good hands. 

“I’m going to see if Alfred needs help,” Tim said as he stood up and then opened the curtain. 

Damian was laying there with a huge gash on his forehead. He looked extremely pale, his skin taking more of an olive tone. Deep dark circles beneath his eyes, showing how exhausted he was. Tim was surprise to see how Damian’s usually round face looked hollow. 

Tim expected Damian to look hurt, but he too looked sick as well? That was more shocking.

“How is he?” Tim asked Alfred as he saw him looking at some lab results.

Alfred sighed heavily and his shoulders slumped. A tired look overcame his face as he flipped the page over.

“Master Damian suffered mild concussion from his fall. He also required some stitches for the cut on his forehead. It does not seem he will have any permanent damage from the fall, perhaps a scar,” Alfred said while he hooked up an I.V on Damian’s arm. 

“That good…” Tim said while he looked down at his younger brother.

“Master Damian also seems to be developing early signs of malnutrition.” 

“What?” Tim asked, stunned.

“It seems we will have to be more careful of Master Damian’s diet. This is something we have to discuss with Master Bruce as well,” Alfred said shaking his head slightly as he set down the file.

Tim looked at Damian, not knowing what to say. He knew his little brother was struggling, but at this point it seems like something big was happening right under their nose.

“Did you run any other tests? Is there something causing these symptoms?” Tim asked as he started playing with his brother's hair.

“Yes, Master Timothy. I ran multiple tests and besides the concussion and the malnutrition, it doesn’t seem there was anything wrong with him. At least physically,” Alfred said as he sat down in a chair next to Damian. 

“I think Bruce needs to step in,” Tim said as he kept playing with Damian’s hair, trying to get the tangles out of the hair. 

“I have to agree with you, Master Timothy,” Alfred said, keeping an eye on Damian.

Tim saw as both his brothers walked in and settled around their youngest sibling.

They all watched as Damian slept, making sure no harm came to him.

It was time to tell Bruce everything that was happening.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey everyone! It's been a while! Honestly real life has kept me very busy and didn't give me much time to write. I just finished moving to a new state! This is all in preparation of me starting graduate soon, I already found a job as well so I'm settling in nicely. I'll do my best to get back on schedule but I appreciate your patience! Your comments fuels my inspirations, so thank you for leaving them and your kudos makes my morning. Find me in tumblr @brokenhearted-queen for any questions or just to say hi. Stay safe and healthy!


	13. Chapter 13

Bruce got used to many different things in his life, lack of sleep, busy nights, even to the amount of crime in Gotham. One of the things he will never get used to, is his children getting injured. When Bruce received the call that Damian got hurt, he wanted to rush toward his youngest son to make sure he was safe. Batman, on the other hand, needed to finish patrol and that's what Bruce did.

He knows that Damian was in good hands. Dick was with him when it happened and Bruce had absolute trust for his oldest son.

Bruce was confident that Damian would have preferred Dick to be there over him. 

“The bird just landed in the nest, Agent A is looking at him now. Big Bird is freaking out, but Replacement and I got it under control,” Bruce could hear Jason’s voice through the communicator piece in his ear.

Bruce took a deep breath and let it out slowly, as he tried to regain his composure now that he knows his sons are both safe and getting the help they need.

He needed to focus on patrol, Bruce knew that Alfred would let him know if he needed assistance. 

“Help!” A scream broke through Bruce's concentration. He looked around trying to find the source of the scream. Bruce could see a woman struggling to get her purse away from a mugger.

Batman landed behind a mugger. As soon as the mugger saw him, he pointed his gun at him and started shooting. 

He avoided all the bullets heading his way and knocked out the mugger with a punch.

All of Batman’s hits landed harder than usual.

-

Bruce removed his cowl as soon as he arrived at the cave. He speed walked towards the medical bed in the cave. 

Heart beating, as countless thoughts consume him.  
Damian was hurt protecting Gotham. Something that Bruce taught him to do. Robin exists because of him. Gotham is his responsibility and he has dragged all his children into the depths of this hell.

Parents are there to protect their children, in this case his children are protecting him.

Bruce can use many words to describe himself: stubborn, relentless, smart. But Bruce couldn’t describe himself as a good father. All of his children were independent at this point. Seeing him more as a mentor than a father. Bruce couldn’t blame them, he has been too busy lately as Batman. He would make time to spend an evening with his sons, perhaps a movie night. Bruce doesn’t believe that Damian has seen Young Frakenstein, he used to love it when he was younger. One of the few memories that Bruce had with his Dad was laughing along to this movie. Bruce hopes that Damian will enjoy the movie. He would talk to Dick to set it up. Jason would probably only come if Dick invites him.

When he arrived at the med bay, he saw Damian in the bed, asleep. All three of his brothers were near him, keeping him company. Dick fell asleep in the chair next to him, holding Damian’s hand. Tim sat by his younger brother's head playing with his hair. Lastly, Jason sat by the feet of the bed, as he leaned back with his arms crossed over his chest, so deep into sleep that he was snoring.

He saw Alfred checking paperwork by the computer. Bruce approached Tim first, as he was the only one of his children who was still awake. Tim looked up at him when Bruce put his hand on Tim’s shoulder. Bruce hoped that the gesture was reassuring.

“Hey B,” Tim mumbled trying his best to not wake up his brothers.

“Hello, son. How are you doing?” He asked, noting the dark circles under Tim’s eyes.

Tim sighed as he started rubbing his face, he looked exhausted. Bruce thought that he looked younger now than what he usually does. His son most often looked very determined and professional, usually this made Tim look more like an adult. At this time, he simply looked like a teenager worried about his younger brother.

“I’m not sure how to answer that,” Tim finally admitted after a moment of silence.

Bruce's eyes widened, surprised that Tim was opening up to him. His sons would usually go to Dick when they wanted to talk with someone and in Dick case he would go to Alfred. He always felt proud when his sons came to him for advice or simply just to talk. This showed that he sons trusted him and felt like they could rely on him. Bruce still needed to work on his communication skills.

“That's okay, Tim. A lot has happened tonight, you want to update me on it? How is Damian doing?” Bruce asked as he moved over to hold Damian’s hand and gave it a squeeze.

Tim looked at Damian for a moment and then at Alfred, his shoulders stiff. Bruce could see that Alfred noticed Tim’s tension. Alfred started walking towards Tim and gave him some paperwork.

“Master Timothy, would you like for me to get you some hot chocolate?” Alfred asked.

Bruce saw Tim’s shoulders drop in relief. He gave Alfred a nod, as he mumbled a small thanks. Alfred then turned to face Bruce.

“Would you like some hot chocolate as well, Master Bruce?”

“That would be great. Thanks Alf,” Bruce said, as he gave Alfred a small smile.

“Very well, I will be back in a moment,” Alfred said, as he gave a small bow and left.

Both Bruce and Tim saw as Alfred left the cave, observing him till he disappeared at the top of the stairs. 

Bruce stayed quiet, as he gave some time, so that Tim could gather his thoughts. In the meantime, he focused on Damian. 

There were many things that Bruce noticed right away. The thing that worried him the most was the stitched up gash on his head. Bruce assumed that he hit his head, or someone hurt him. 

Bruce eyebrows furrowed, as the longer he stared the more alarmed he got about Damian wellbeing. His skin, which usually held youthful glow, looked pale. There were deep dark circles under his eyes that showed his lack of sleep. Bruce could even tell he had lost a significant amount of weight, enough for him to be able to notice.

What is happening to his son?

Was Damian sick?

How has he not noticed before today?

Thinking back, Bruce couldn’t remember the last time he saw Damian outside of patrol. Has he really been that distant? 

Bruce felt guilt rise up, he couldn’t believe he allowed things to go this far. He knew that Damian was independent, that he could take care of himself and would prefer it that way. But he was still his dad, he still needed to protect and take care of Damian.

“He has a mild concussion from the fall. Dick said he hit his head on the way down, but he caught him before anything else happened, ” Tim’s voice said, startling him from his thoughts.

“Was Dick okay?” Bruce asked worried about how Damian's fall could have triggered his oldest son.

“His wrist got dislocated, but I was able to fix it. He was having a panic attack, so we had to calm him down before he could do anything. But he’s alright now,” Tim explained glancing at his older brother, giving him a worried looked.

Bruce also gave Dick a worried look, he would have to talk to him later in the morning to make sure he’s alright. He looked at Tim and saw him playing with Damian’s hair with his fingers again. A softer side of Tim that Bruce rarely saw, especially towards Damian.

“Is Damian sick? Was that the cause of the fall?” Bruce wondered out loud, after all Damian looked sick,

Tim simply shook his head at him. This made Bruce even more confused.

“No, Alfred did some tests and didn’t find anything wrong with him...well…” Tim trailed off, avoiding eye contact with Bruce.

Bruce could tell that Tim felt uncomfortable talking to him. He tried to give him some space and time to let Tim talk. Bruce felt his worry increased tenfold, what could be wrong with his youngest son?

“Alfred saw the beginning signs of malnutrition,” Tim confessed as he looked up at Bruce.

And well, Bruce was shocked. 

“How…” Bruce began and simply trailed off.

He didn’t know what to say. There was always food in the manor, Alfred was always there to make dinner and in the worst case scenario they could always buy some food. There was no reason Damian shouldn’t be getting the nutrients that he needs.

“Are we certain that he is not sick?” Bruce finally asked after a moment.

“Bruce, he is not physically sick. Alfred ran all the tests and nothing was wrong besides the signs...we can run them again, but I don’t think that's going to change anything…” Tim explained to him.

Bruce was having a hard time wrapping his head around what was happening. If Damian wasn’t sick...why wasn’t he eating? His youngest son has always been an advocate of a healthy diet. Alfred had told him about Damian creating a vitamin plan to make sure everyone was getting their nutritional needs met. Why would he ignore his own needs?

He took the paperwork in Tim’s hands and started flipping through them. As he confirmed, exactly what Tim just told him. Bruce looked up to see Tim staring at him and waiting for his response. But Bruce could tell he knew more than what he was telling him.

“What is it?” Bruce finally asked, after setting the papers down on the desk near him.

“Damian has been acting odd these last few weeks...I think he might be depressed,” Tim admitted looking down at his laps, fumbling with his fingers.

“Depressed…?” Bruce whispered to himself in shock.

It was hard for him to imagine that Damian was depressed. Bruce could understand why Damian would be depressed. His son's life has always been difficult, and Bruce is proud of how much Damian has grown. But admitting to himself that Damian was depressed? That was difficult.

Batman was trained to be able to detect many mental illnesses, especially depression. He did this to be able to help the people of Gotham better.

But Bruce couldn’t tell that his own child was suffering? That highlighted his failure as a father.  
Bruce looked up at Tim, and saw the worry on his face. He continued to stare around the room, he saw the tears stain on Dick’s cheeks, notice the scratches and deep circle under Jason’s eyes.

He saw Damian laying on the medical bed, looking frail and vulnerable.

Bruce needed to do better, he needs to be a better father for his children.

But...how could he do that?

Where could he start?

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey everyone! Finally came out with a new came out with a new chapter. Slightly longer than previous chapters so yay me! Let me know what you think of Bruce POV? It's honestly the first time I written anything for his POV so let me know how I did. I love reading your comments, they full my inspiration honestly! And the kudos notification in the morning makes my day a little brighter. You can find me at tumblr @brokenhearted-queen and feel free to go and ask any questions or just chat!
> 
> Stay safe everyone!


	14. Chapter 14

Damian woke up slowly, he felt groggy as he forced his eyes open. It wasn’t often that Damian woke up in the med bay, usually it would be just Pennyworth and him whenever he got hurt. Sometimes Grayson would be there as well, if he was in Gotham when he got injured.

To say he was surprised when he saw not only his father sleeping in a chair next to his bed, but as well of all his brothers, was an understatement. 

He doubted that Grayson was sleeping comfortably, the chair was too small to contain his long limbs. Damian attempted to remove his hand out of Grayson’s grasp, instead his oldest brother tightened his grip.

Carefully, Damian attempted to sit up, his world tilting as he felt an extreme amount of nausea.

“Wow, wow...careful, Baby Bat. Don’t want you falling again,” Todd said as he grabbed his shoulders, to steady him.

Damian didn’t know how Todd got from the foot of his bed to right next to him, but for once he appreciated the help. His eyebrows furrowed in thought and confusion. Damian knew he was hurt. That is the reason why he was in the Med Bay, but he could not remember how he got injured.

“Falling?” Damian tried to ask, but it came out more like a mumble.

“Yeah, buddy. You took a swan dive, but Dick was able to help you,” Todd explained.

Damian observed Todd, as he let go of his shoulders and walked away. He returns shortly, holding out the water bottle for Damian to take.

He started at the water bottle, his mind not processing why Todd was giving it to him. Todd kept waiting, holding the water bottle. After a while, he uncapped it and handed it to Damian, with a roll of his eyes.

“Here, drink it. You must be thirsty,” Todd said, while Damian grabbed the water and took a sip.

Todd was right, he was thirsty. Damian wondered when was the last time he had something to drink. How long has he been asleep? It could not have been more than two days for what he could see. He did not believe his family would have stayed longer than that.  
“Damian?” Todd asked him.

He looked up, startled out of his thoughts when he heard his brother's voice. Todd looked at him with concern, eyebrows furrowed in thought.

“How long...have I been out?” Damian asked as he touched his head, he flinched when he felt the gash on his head.

“Not too long, it’s been three days. You had us worry for a second. If you didn’t wake up soon B would have blown a blood vessel,” Todd attempted to smirk, but in the end it looked more like a grimace. 

Damian was shocked, he could not believe that he was out for three days. He looked around the room again and he could not help the warmth he felt when he realized that his family had been there for him the last few days. 

They must have been worried about him, but Damian did not believe this was a huge deal. He would not say that he felt fine. He will not lie to himself about that. Damian still felt the neverending ache in his head, now intensified by the fall. 

Damian felt himself stiffen when he recalled the fall. He looked at his oldest brother, as he inspected him. Fearful that he had gained an injury when he caught him.

“He’s fine, if that's what you worry about. Dickie here dislocated his wrist when he caught but besides that he is doing okay. Well...he is doing his mother hen act, but what else is new?”Todd told him with a shrug.

Todd’s words eased his worry. Everyone else seemed to be fine, the only people hurt on patrol was Grayson and him. Damian assumed that Grayson was so minimal he could have gone back to Bludhaven already.

Damian could not help to wonder, if his injuries were so worrisome that all his family members stayed behind?

“Was I dying again?” Damian asked Todd.

Todd spluttered for a moment, surprised at Damian's question. His eyebrows furrowed as his older brother pinched the bridge of his nose. To Damian, Todd resembled their father.

“And why the fuck would you think that? Ah, Demon Brat?” Todd said as he tilted his head to the side.

Damian looked around for a moment and pointed toward his sleeping family.

“It is unusual for everyone to be here over a simple injury. I expected to perhaps see Pennyworth and Grayson when I woke for obvious reasons, but…” Damian trailed off as he looked at his father. “But, I am surprised to see everyone else.”

Todd looked at him, Damian could different flashes of emotion going through his face. He could not tell what those emotions were, his mind was tired and just being awake was a struggle. 

“No, you did not almost die. You gave us a scare but Dick caught you before you hit the floor,” Todd explained as he rubbed the back of his neck.

Damian nodded as he felt a wave of dizziness hit him. He lifted the hand that was not being held by his brother and put it against his head to apply some pressure. Damian flinched when he touched the gash on his forehead, he had forgotten it was there for a moment. Did Todd tell him he had a cut? Damian could not remember, but he was too exhausted to ask. If Damian were to be honest, these days he always felt tired, this was not something new. He hoped that his tiredness would go away or he would get used to it.

He was surprised once again by his brother when he touched his shoulder. Damian looked up at him, he could see the worry in his brother’s face once again. He shook his head, and felt his headache increase. Damian needed to stop spacing out and pay attention to his surroundings. He has been ignoring his training this last few weeks, which is unlike him.

“Yes?” Damian finally asked after a moment.

Todd looked at him weirdly, Damian did not believe he was being judged but he felt he was being studied.

“Everyone has been waiting on you to wake up, we should have Alfie check you over and tell the others that you are awake,” Todd said as he stood up from his chair.

“Wait,” Damian said as he grabbed Todd’s arm.

He stopped and looked at Damian with his eyebrow raised in question.

“Do not wake anyone up...they seemed to be tired. We should not disturbed their sleep,” Damian said as he looked over Grayson who was still holding his hand.

Todd stopped and looked around the room as he considered his options. Damian could feel his anxiety rise as he waited for his brother's decision. In all honesty, Damian felt too exhausted to deal with his family disapproval and pity. He knew that his headache would only get worse if his family woke up. Damian looked at his brother until he nodded. 

“I won’t wake everyone up, but-” Todd said while he held one finger up “-you need to let Alfie check you over. I promise him I would wake him if you woke up.”

Damian did not want to wake Pennyworth up, but he understood that Alfie would be displeased to not be informed about him being up.

“That seems reasonable,” Damian admitted as he let go of Todd’s arm.

His brother nodded and went to look for Pennyworth. Damian watched his brother walk away. He looked around the room, Damian was surprised his family didn’t wake up over Todd and his conversation. Perhaps they were overworking themselves, Damian wondered if they were following the vitamin schedule he created for them. He had worked hard to create that list and he hoped that his family took advantage of it.

“Master Damian?” Pennyworth's voice startled him from his thoughts.

“Hello,” He responded as he tried to smile.

“It is good to see you awake, Master Damian,” Pennyworth said as he approached the bed. “How do you feel?”

Damian did not know how to answer the question. He felt awful, but he has not been feeling well for a while.

“My head hurts and I am tired,” Damian finally decided to say.

He was exhausted and simply wanted to go back to sleep. Damian was struggling to keep his eyes open, every time he blinked his eyes would stay closed for longer.

“I understand, Master Damian. Allow me to run some tests and you may go back to sleep,” Pennyworth said as he gently grabbed his chin and tilted his head slightly.  
Damian hummed in response as he followed Pennyworth instructions. As time passed, Damia movements became slower and it was difficult to follow Pennyworth instructions. He could see him standing right in front of him. Damian's head would drop so often and he would jolt awake. Pennyworth kept insisting that he was almost done, not that Damian believed him because it felt like hours.

“Master Damian, we are almost done,” Pennyworth said with a soft voice.

He tried to listen to Pennyworth. Damian tried his best, but he was too exhausted. Slowly, he closed his eyes and fell asleep to the sound of Pennyworth's voice.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey everyone! It's been a while! I started grad student life, y'all should wish me luck. This chapter was a hard one, while i have the story completely outline I been adding chapters and changing some things from the original outline and all the changes caught up in this chapter so I had to fix it! Please tell me what you think! I love reading thru your comments and the email I get every morning about kuddos makes my day! Thanks Cdelphiki for betareading for me! Find me at tumblr @brokenhearted-queen


	15. Chapter 15

Damian could hear the sound of people fighting. Everyone was yelling, which made Damian's headache worse. He wanted to tell them to stop, but at that moment he was having a hard time opening his eyes. Damian could not help but wonder why everyone was screaming. It must still be early if he was still asleep. 

“You should’ve woken us up!” A deep voice continued to argued.

Damian grumbled a bit as he tried to continue to speak. The screaming voice wanted to be woken up, but he didn’t. Exhaustion and pain were the only thing Damian could feel. The people who were fighting did not help either of these.

“He didn’t want you to be up!” Another voice yelled back.

He did not want to wake up, but Damian thought the voices did not give him any other choice. Slowly he opened his eyes and attempted to sit up. A wave of nausea and dizziness hit Damian as soon as he was upright. Damian thought he was going to fall, when he felt strong arms steady him. 

“Wow, Dami, take your time,” the deep voice said.

Damian blinked a few times until he could focus on the person holding on to him. As soon as his vision focus could see his oldest brother. Grayson’s eyebrows furrowed; he looked at Damian with worry. 

“Dami, how are you feeling?” Grayson asked as he settled Damian into a comfortable sitting position.

He was not sure how to answer Grayson's question. Did they know he was feeling ill before the fall? Was he asking specifically about how he was feeling after the fall? Or was this just a general question he needed to answer?

“Dami?” Grayson's voice interrupted his thoughts.

Right, Damian still needed to answer his oldest brother. He attempted to speak but his throat ached in protest. Damian tried to clear his throat but his throat felt like sandpaper.

“Let me get you some water,” Todd said as he rushed off.  
Damian nodded, surprised to see Todd, he expected him to be gone by the time he woke up. He waited for the water. Grayson attempted to talk to him, reassure him, but Damian could not focused on his brother's words. His head was throbbing, it was worse than it had been for the last few weeks. He suspected he had a concussion, there was no other reason for his head to pain him this much.

He looked up to see Grayson’s worried eyes. It made him flinch, he felt guilty. Damian knew that anything to do with falls and falling made his oldest brother uneasy. And what did he do? He fell. Damian knew he should be grateful that Nightwing was able to catch him.

As Damian looked around the room he saw Drake hovering around Pennyworth. It seemed like he was pestering Pennyworth. Damian felt bad for the older gentleman, Drake could be annoying at times. He kept searching, as he tried to see if he could locate the missing face, but after a few seconds went by, Damian slumped in disappointment. 

He should be happy…all his brothers were there. Damian also had Pennyworth. But where did his Father go? Did he get called on patol? Was it night time already? If it was, why were his brothers still there? They should be out patrolling, not stuck there with him. 

Damian gasped, startled out of his thoughts. Todd was attempting to get Damian’s attention. His older brother was holding out a cup of water to him. Damian mumbled his thanks as he took small sips of water. 

Grayson was still waiting, and Damian forgot what he was waiting for. His eyebrows furrowed as he tried to remember what his oldest brother wanted from him.

“Lil’D, how are you feeling?” Grayson finally asked him.

Damian took a sip of water before answering. He hoped that he could gather his thoughts for a moment. How honest should he be?

“I do not feel great, I believe I have a headache,” Damian said finally, not lying but not telling the complete truth.

“More like a concussion,” Drake said while he rolled his eyes.

Damian nodded slowly, he was pretty sure Todd mentioned that the last time he was awake. He looked at Grayson, who kept looking at him with worry.

“How are you, Grayson?” 

Grayson chuckled a bit, Damian thought the chuckle sounded off.

“I’m fine, Dami. Just worried about you.”

Damian simply hummed and finished drinking his water. He tried to put it to the side on the table when a kind voice interrupted him. 

“Allow me, Master Damian,” Pennyworth said as he grabbed the cup and set it on the table next to him.

“Thank you, Pennyworth,” Damian told him with a small smile.

“Now, Master Damian, you gave us quite a scare, thankfully you will make a full recovery. Master Bruce is on his way down. He was tasked to bring everyone some food,” Pennyworth explained.

Damian did not expect the rush of relief that flooded into him. It felt nice to know that his father did not just leave.

“He's going to be pissed that he missed you waking up again. You have the best timing, Demon Brat,” Jason said as he chuckled.

Damian frowned at him. Was Todd teasing him? Or was he reprimanding him? He wondered if Todd was upset that he told him not to wake up their family, but everyone looked tired and there was no reason for Damian to wake him up.

Before Damian could ask, his father arrived carrying multiple pizza boxes. Damian’s father smiled as soon as he saw Damian was awake. He gave Todd the boxes and approached Damian. He could not help and flinch when he saw his father walk toward him with a determined look.

Was his father angry at him? Damian could not help and wonder. Grayson always told him that mistakes were permitted, but this was a big mistake. He did not only ruin the mission, but he had gotten Grayson injured. Damian tensed up when his father gave him an awkward but gentle embrace. He relaxed into the embrace a few beats later.

“I’m so glad you’re okay, son,” Father said as he pulled back from the hug.

Damian felt a rush of sadness as soon as Father pulled back from the hug. He looked around the cave and saw all his family eating. Even Pennyworth was eating the pizza, though he looked very displeased about it. It was nice to have his family around him, it had been awhile since he saw everyone in the same room. Damian could not even remember when was the last time they had all been together. A month? Perhaps two? Definitely before his headaches started, but even then he was having a hard time remembering when was the last time he was pain free. Damian eyebrows furrowed unsure on what to do or say.

“Damian, we have to talk,” Father said to him.

“Yes, Father?” Damian responded as his blood went cold.

Father looked at him for a moment and slowly put his hand on his shoulder.

“You have some serious injury, you need to take some time and get better,” Father said with a kind voice.

Damian looked at him confused for a moment. Why was his father speaking to him in that tone? His eyes widened and his jaw dropped as he stared at his father.

“Are you benching me?” Damian asked incredulously.

Father's jaw snapped shut, and he looked incredibly uncomfortable. No one in the room looked at him as they pretended to be too focused on their food.

He honestly did not know what to say about being benched. It was a relief to not have to worry about patrol. Lately, it had been hard to follow the new patrol schedule. Damian felt tired all the time, he also had accepted that he was sick. Something was off with his body, he knew he had a concussion from the fall, but had felt ill before that. He could not tell his family...Damian had no idea what was wrong. There was no way he was telling his father about it. Father was already trying to bench him for a simple concussion. If he found out that he was ill, he would think that Damian was weak. Damian was not going to give him another reason to find him inadequate.

“You cannot bench me!” He finally said with a scowl.

Father sighed and looked over at Grayson, who simply shook his head.

“Damian, you’re hurt. You need time to heal, this is not up for negotiation,” Father said with a stern voice. After a few seconds he squeezed Damian's shoulder. “We just want you to feel better. Let us take care of you.”

“Okay,” Damian said after a while, too tired to fight.

He needed a plan, Damian needed to find out what’s wrong with him. Now, that he was benched, Damian could take the opportunity to investigate with no interruptions.

For now, he will simply enjoy his family company.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey y'all! First thing first thanks to the lovely @cdelphiki for betareading for me. I am back from the dead! Honestly grad school has me busy, I'm in the middle of midterms and I been wanting to get this done for a while and it's finally done! What are everyone thoughts of this chapter? I love reading your comments and appreciate every kudos. I don't have an exact date for the next update but do not plan on having y'all wait this long again. Come find me at tumblr @brokenhearted-queen, if you wanna talk or have question! See you next time!


	16. Chapter 16

Tim was annoyed at first. After all he got stuck on babysitting duty. Everyone was suspicious of Damian's reaction to being benched. It was expected for him to make a bigger deal of things, but he didn’t. Tim was sure that Damian was just trying to get their guard down so he could escape and go on patrol. Tim was dumb enough to point this out to Bruce. Now, here he was watching for the brat all day.

Not that Tim wasn’t worried about him. He was trying to be more sensible now that they knew about Damian’s depression. Tim had been watching the Demon Brat for the last few days, but he hadn’t tried anything funny. He did seem annoyed any time he saw Tim around him, but he didn’t try to instigate anything with Tim. Which by itself made Tim think he was up to something.

He had been roaming the mansion for 15 minutes already, as he attempted to locate his younger brother. Room after room he couldn’t find him. Tim was beginning to think that Damian succeeded in evading him. 

Tim made his way to the kitchen and found Alfred preparing dinner.

“Hey Alf, have you seen Damian?” Tim asked as he poked his head in.

“Last time I saw Master Damian he was in the library,” Alfred answered as he added some seasoning to his food.

“Thanks!” Tim called out as he made his way to the library. 

Tim attempted to be as quiet as possible as he approached the library. He didn’t want the brat to bolt as soon as he saw him. Tim slowed his steps when he approached the library and peaked into the open door. He was surprised at what he saw. There was Damian asleep on the couch, charcoal smeared all over his cheek, with Alfred the Cat sleeping on top of him. Tim’s heart twinged with the sweet scene in front of him. 

It was a cute scene, even Tim could admit that. He didn’t know that Damian had it in him.

He would let him sleep for now  
_

Tim needed to check on Damian he knew that, but Damian would have to wait. Something came up on the serial killer case. There was a new victim, Batman sent him the information over after Commissioner Gordon finished processing the crime scene. This victim was female, and was B- negative as well. Like other victims she has bled out and died at the hospital. This got Tim thinking, even if the serial killer planned to have the victims bleed out, the probability most of them dying in the hospital was minimal, almost impossible. This meant that the killer intention was for the victim to die at the hospital.

He picked up his mug of cold coffee and took a sip. He let out a sighed as he put the mug back down.

Tim didn’t understand why the killer wanted the victims to die at the hospital, but Tim did not understand much about this case to begin with.

He had set up his computer program to track the 9-11 calls, to see if they can trace the calls back to the killer. Afterall the only way they could’ve time for the victims to die at the hospital was if they made the call themselves. Tim should also go over the 9-1-1 audio recordings to see if they were made by the same person. If he was lucky he could see if their any identifiers in the calls to trace it back to the killer. Tim would let the program run as he checked on Damian.

He could also share the discovery with the twerp. Damian had been helpful throughout the investigation, and it only felt right to keep him in the loop.

This time, Tim headed straight to the library. He knew this has become a new safe space over the last few days. Tim had tried hard to be respectful at this, he made sure he was out of site when he went to check on Damian. 

Tim made his way to the library and once again slowed down his steps when he was near the library. As carefully as he could, he looked into the library.

He saw Damian sitting on the floor surrounded by paper, when Tim saw that he was there he was going to walk away, but something made him stop. When he got a closer look at Damian, Tim could see that Damian was staring at his hand, not at the paperwork in front of him. 

Tim’s eyes widened when he noticed why Damian was staring at his hands. They were trembling. Was Damiand having a panic attack?

He tried to make his way into the library and Damian head snapped up when he heard Tim walk in.

“Get out,” Damiand said with a scowl.

“Damian-” Tim tried to say.

“ Get. Out, “ Damian yelled as he stood up.

“Damian, I just want to help,” Tim said as he kept his voice calm.

“You can help by leaving me alone! Stop pestering me!” Damian screamed as his hand trembling seemed to increase.

Tim tried once again but Damian threw a book at him and Tim decided to give him some air.

If Damian was having a panic attack, he didn’t want Tim nowhere near him.

He couldn’t help feeling hurt about it.  
-

Tim thought Damian was supposed to get better as time went on. But that was not the case with Damian. If anything he seemed to be getting worse. Damian’s dark circles had worsened. He looked thinner everyday, his cheeks hollowing out slightly. His skin had taken a sickly green tone and his energy felt nonexistent. After his last outburst, Damian seemed to have lost all energy to fight back. Simply glancing at him every time he went to check on him. 

He would mainly see Damian in the library, rarely would he find him in his room. Always surrounded by different papers, never allowing Tim to look at them. Damian made sure the papers were well covered by the time Tim went to check on him.

Last time he saw him, Alfred handed Damian some soup. He didn’t look very pleased about it but he thanked Alfred either way.

Tim made his way to the library, the same thing he had been doing for the last few days. This time however, he was startled when he heard retching sounds coming from the area. 

He ran to the library and as soon as he got there threw the bathroom room open. Where he found Damian, vomiting. Tim didn’t know what to do. After a few seconds he settled for rubbing soothing circles on Damian’s back. The same way Bruce had done for him before. Damian kept drive heaving for a minute or so longer. Tim stood up and got him a cup filled with water from the sink. He waited as Damian took some of the water before spit it into the toilet.

After a moment, Damian stood up and ignored Tim, he followed after him and grabbed his arm.

“Are you okay?” Tim asked when Damian glared at him.

“No, how can I be okay if you keep pestering me every second of every day? I’m following your little rules. I’m not escaping, or running away, so why don't you leave me alone already,” Damian snapped as he pulled his arm away from Tim’s grip.

“Come on, Damian-”

“No-” Damian yelled as he stopped back. “I am tired of you invading my privacy and treating me like a criminal. I already told you to leave me alone. Stay away! Or I will make you!” Damian yelled the last part as he stormed away. 

Tim watched him leave not knowing what to do. One thing he knew for certain was that Damian was hiding something.

And he would find out what it is.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I got some free time so I was able to get the chapter done! I'm so happy, this chapter was super fun to write. I been loving reading you guys comments and questions. That made me so excited and really help me get through my midterms so thank you guys! Kuddos are always appreciated. Find me at tumblr @brokenhearted-queen and thanks again to the lovely @cdelphiki for betareading once again!


	17. Chapter 17

Damian was working in the library once again. He needed to find a new hiding place soon. Drake had ruined all the peace and quiet. Drake kept pestering him by checking in on him. Damian was not stupid he would not go on patrol the way he was, especially since Drake kept stalking him. The problem was Damian did not want to leave the library. It was very peaceful and this was where he hid all his drawing he was getting ready for Christmas. 

He had been researching, trying to find out what was making him ill. Damian started a list of all the symptoms he had noticed. Now that he had it down on paper, he felt foolish for not accepting it before. For Damian, this list was a glaring reminder of all his weaknesses. If he was still at the League, this would have not been tolerated. Him being ill had not only affected his training but has caused problems during patrol, but Damian had even gotten Grayson injured and triggered the memories of his parents demise. 

Deep down, Damian could not help but feel like a horrible brother. Grayson took the brunt of the damage he caused, but he had also inconvenienced Todd and Drake

Damian scowled, thinking about Drake being tasked to keep him from patrolling. He was annoyed, certainly, but he imagined that Drake was equally as annoyed. After all, he was spending valuable time that he could be doing more productive things. One of those things could be working on the serial killer case that they had failed to stop. Todd on the other hand, had to take care of him and Grayson when he fell.

He sighed as he sat down on the floor. Damian picked up his list that contained his symptoms. He had to admit that he had no idea what to do. While he was trained to know many illnesses he could not do much without running tests. If Damian began to run tests his family would be suspicious. Pennyworth ran many tests when he was unconscious that showed that there was nothing wrong besides the early signs of malnutrition. 

The first thing on his last was migraines, he had them non-stop for months now. Pain pills were not even making a dent lately. He’d been trying his best to ignore them and make them go away but nothing had worked. Damian had scratched out the next symptom on his list. Not knowing how to describe it. A space next to him waiting to be filled.

He tapped his pen against his leg as he thought for the best way of describing what he was feeling. Damian kept tapping the pen as he hummed and got lost in his thoughts. His mind drifting to the painting he needed to finish. Damian had to start his Father’s gift soon or he won’t be able to finish it in time.

Suddenly, it struck him. He hesitated slightly, as he stopped taping the pen. After a moment he finally put down: difficult time concentrating. That was something Damian had been struggling with for quite some time and he was sure that his family had noticed.

He glanced down at his list again, his stomach knotting at the reminder. Damian had highlighted the third item on his list knowing it was the cause of malnutrition. In big letters, vomiting was third on his list. Damian's rest was interrupted, earlier that morning as he had to wake up and rush to the bathroom so as to not ruin his sheets.

This had surprised Damian greatly as he had not been feeling hungry this last few days and was limiting his food intake greatly. Damian huffed as he realized that was another thing he been struggling with for the last few weeks. He added lack of appetite right below vomiting. He hummed once again as he tried to think of what else has been bothering him the last few months.

Damian was slightly surprised as he reminded himself that he had been feeling unwell for months. He had tried to self-medicate to help mostly with the migraine, but he did try vitamins to help with his eating habits. 

He stood up and started pacing back and forth as he began to think of all the changes that had happened over the last few months. Damian was constantly exhausted but he had been resting more than he had ever in his life. He even stopped training to avoid feeling as exhausted as he did, but that had not helped. 

“What is happening to me?” Damian mumbled to himself as he sat back down and grabbed his list again.

He quickly scrawled exhausted on his list. What else was Damian missing? He couldn’t remember. He should remember...right?

Damian grabbed the end of his hair and grasped it slightly as he did his best to think about what was happening. He only had five symptoms listed, he knew they were more. 

There shouldn’t be more. Damian couldn’t understand how he gottent this bad. He was being weak. If he were still in the League of Assassins, this would have been unacceptable.

That thought made Damian stand up once again and he began to pace. He knew that being sick was unacceptable in the league. But he wasn’t sure if that was the case in the manor.

Damian was no fool, he was sick before while living with his father. Nothing big, he simply got a cold. He had been hurt during patrol, but that didn’t count. Damian did that to protect Gotham and that made Father happy. 

But what he had now? It was serious, it was no simple cold. It’d been happening for months and now it was affecting his patrolling. Damian was benched now, because of his concussion, he had an excuse. What would happen when he healed? Damian did not think he would be able to be Robin for a while. 

He stopped abruptly once again as he tried to control his heart rate. His heart was beating rapidly as his nerves increased. Damian raised his hands slowly, he wanted to attempt to count his pulse. 

His hands shook too badly to be able to tell what his heart rate was. Damian blinked slowly as he stared at his hands

Oh.

That was another symptom, his hands had been shaking for a while now. Making it hard for him to complete his painting. He had been taking breaks more frequently to not ruin his artwork. It had slowed him down tremendously.

Damian took a deep breath and held it for a few seconds. After a few seconds had passed he released the breath slowly. He did this for a while until he felt his heart rate decrease. He felt a ping of gratitude for Grayson for teaching him this breathing exercise. At times like this they were very helpful.

He sat down once again and Damian hoped he would stay seated for a while now. He grabbed his pen, with his still shaking hands. As slowly as he could, he attempted to write trembling hands. It was not his finest work, but at least it was legible.

Damian kept staring at his list. Not sure what to do next. He knew he needed to move forward. Be the detective he was supposed to be, but he couldn’t bring himself to do more than just sit there. 

What was Damian supposed to do now?

His thoughts were interrupted with a knock on the door. He looked up to his Father standing there looking at him.

Damian could feel the warmth going up his neck to the tips of his ears. 

He should have noticed his father's arrival.

He should have been more alert.

If it were an intruder Damian would have been dead by now.

Father cleared his throat, getting his attention once again. 

“Yes, Father?” Damian finally asked.

His father looked uncomfortable as he shifted back and forth, seemingly unsure if to enter the library or not. 

“I was wondering, if you would like to go to the mall with me?” Father asked after a few seconds of silence.

Damian looked at his Father, taken back by his invitation. Damian had not seen his Father outside of patrol in a long time. He honestly could not remember the last time they went out together.

“The...mall?” Damian asked in a confused tone. 

Father rubbed the back of his neck, looking unsure. Damian felt odd looking at his father. He had never seen him act like this.

“Yes, I thought it would be something we both can enjoy,” Father admitted as he looked at him.

Damian simply nodded.

At least now, he knows what to do next.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> New update it's finally here! Let me know what you guys think. Thanks once again to Cait for betareading. I really enjoy your comments and appreciate every kudos. Find me at tumblr @brokenhearted-queen


	18. Chapter 18

Damian looked at himself in the mirror. He did not know how to feel about how he looked. Father had given him some time to change into something that wasn’t covered in paint, pen, and charcoal smears. Damian did not remember the last time he actually looked at himself in the mirror. The clothes that he was wearing were unnaturally loose on him. A reminder of how much weight he has lost. 

He had lost a significant amount of muscle, looking thinner than he had ever had in his life. Damian knew that this was not good, a sign of what worse to come. His eyes now had dark circles permanently in place. Damian had given up on covering them with a concealer. That required more energy that he possessed. 

Father was a detective...he should have noticed all these changes, but Damian was hopeful that he would not bring it up during their trip together. He couldn’t help but wonder if the reason for the mall outing was for his father to talk about his issues. Damian hoped that was not the case, he wanted to enjoy the time he had with his father. 

A knock startled him, when he looked at the source he saw his father waiting for him. 

“You ready?” Father asked as he stared at him.

Damian nodded and walked out of the room to follow him. 

As they made their way to the car, his father attempted to make small talk but Damian could not concentrate on what his father was saying.

His mind kept drifting to the list that was now hiding between the couch cushions in the library. He wanted to hide it with his drawings but he didn’t want to contaminate his art with such a dreadful topic.

They arrived at the car and Damian sat in the passenger seat. He heard Father telling him how he was too young to sit shot-gunned, but he felt too tired to move. 

As he looked out the window watching the clouds pass by and hearing the sound of his father's voice, Damian fell asleep.

_ 

Damian jolted awake when he felt someone’s hand on his shoulder. He looked up with wide eyes and saw his father looking at him with a sheepish smile.

“We’re here, son,” Father announced as he stepped out of the car.

Damian’s guard had been extremely low the last few weeks. He knew it was a dangerous habit to keep. 

Right, Damian thought as he looked up, Father was still waiting for him.

He unbuckled his seatbelt and followed his father.

For a while they both walked in silence, simply enjoying each others’ company. Damian was fumbling with his hands unsure of what to do.

Honestly, Damian did not know why his father took him to the mall. He’d never been there before and by the looks of it, neither had his father.

Damian walked around following his father for a few minutes and then decided to break the silence.

“Father...what are we doing here?”

He looked at Damian a bit confused. Father stopped and shrugged after a few seconds.

“I’m...not sure. Usually when I bring your siblings they drag me around and do what they need to do,” Father explained as he guided them towards a bench in the corner.

Damian stared at him after sitting down. He hummed in response, unsure of what to say.

“I do not need anything, Father,” Damian admitted after a few tense seconds.

His father kept looking at him with a puzzled expression. Damian could see a quick emotion flash throw his face before Father nodded to himself.

“It’s fine that you don’t need anything, but would you like anything?” 

“Like anything…?” Damian asked eyebrows furrowed.

“Yes, Damian. Is there anything you want?” Father asked again, his tone patient.

He didn’t know how to answer. Was this a test? Was there something that he should ask for specifically? People did not usually ask him about what he wanted. Father said that he would bring his brothers and they would tell him what to do. Was he supposed to do the same?

“Son?” Father’s voice interrupted his thought process.

Damian looked up, staring at his father, whose brows were furrowed with his lip drawn in a thin line. He needed to answer him, Damian knew that but he had no idea what to ask for. There was no way he could ask for art supplies, Father would get suspicious about why he needed the art supplies. His father might find out about his Christmas gift.

“Music,” Damian finally blurted out.

Father looked at him as his eyebrow raised in question.

“Music?”

Damian nodded while he played with his fingers.

“Is there anything specific you want? Do you want a CD or perhaps an instrument?” Father asked as he grabbed his hand and gave a squeeze in reassurance. 

Damian was just glad that his hands weren’t shaking at the moment.

“I would like a violin. I was learning how to play it when I was with Mother but…” he trailed off.

Damian looked at his father who was waiting patiently for him to finish.

“Mother did not think I should focus on such frivolous activity,” Damian admitted.

He saw his father's jaw tighten and a flash of anger appear in his eyes. Damian flinched back as he let go of his father’s hand. 

Father stood abruptly and started walking. Damian followed him, startled, scared that he had ruined their day out.

“Father, where are we going?” Damian sputtered out.

“To find the music store. I am sure there is one here somewhere. Come on, we are getting you that violin,” Father said as he took his hand and gently pulled him next to him.

Both of them walked the mall for at least an hours.

Damian was sure they had passed the same clothing store four times.

Finally, they found the music store. Father grinned at him.

“I knew there was a music store here.”

Damian looked at him, feeling extremely tired from all the walking they’d just done. He looked at his father in slight disbelief. 

“Have you ever been inside the music store?” Damian asked, raising his eyebrow.

His father simply chuckled at him and guided him inside the store. Damian huffed at him in disbelief. He was completely capable of walking by himself, his father did not need to guide him anywhere. 

Damian looked around the store as his Father went in search of help. He looked around and let the music from the store calm him. He was seeing a different side of his father today, which was unnerving. Damian was still waiting for the other shoes to drop. There must be something that his father wanted from him. It was likely that he wanted to ask him some questions. 

He started wandering the store with no goal in mind. He observed the different instruments around him, none calling his attention. Damian had not seen a violin as of yet, until he saw his father walking towards him.

Father was holding a violin and handed it to Damian with a nervous smile.

“The store manager said this was a good violin for children,” Father said and Damian could not help and scowl at him.

Damian took the violin and looked down at it derisively. This violin was made out of horrible material, he doubted it was even real wood. It was designed to trick a novice into thinking it was a good quality instrument, but in the end it was just a disappointment. The violin would probably last him a month with intense training.

Father chuckled at him and Damian looked up offended.  
How dare his Father laugh at him?

“You don’t like that violin, huh?” Father asked as he moved his hand towards his head.

Father hesitated and put his arm down. Damian just gave him a bland look.

“This is terrible craftsmanship, only a fool would get this violin,” he said with a scowl.

His father gave him a small smile as he squeezed his shoulder.

“Perhaps you can show me what a good violin looks like then,” Father said as he released his shoulder.

Damian nodded and made his way to the desk, where they had their violin selection. He looked at their options, almost all of them useless. Damian doubted that the store had a violin worthy of him. His old violin was crafted by the best in the world to suit his needs, but he had outgrown it and his mother didn’t think he should bother with the violin.

It was after a moment when one violin finally caught his eyes. 

“I want to see that one,” Damian said, as he pointed at the violin in the middle shelf at left. The worker looked at Damian weirdly and shook his head.

“Kid, that is the most expensive violin we have in the store. If you think I’m just going to let you break it,” The employee scoffed as he rolled his eyes.

His father stiffened behind him and gave the worker his Brucie smile. 

“It should be fine, we can afford it,” Father said as leaned over the counter staring at the employee.

The employee's eyes widened as he realized exactly who he was talking to. Damian scoffed at the employee as he waited for the employee to give him the violin. The employee shrugged and crossed his arms over his chest.

“Look, I don’t care how rich you are. This violin is for advanced players and I won’t let the kid damage it.”

Damian was furious.

How dare the employee speak to him like that.

How dare the employee assume that he would damage the violin.

Damian wanted to scream at him and he prepared to show the employee all his fury. He stopped when he felt a hand on his shoulder. Damian looked up at his Father whose jaw was set tight.

“Don’t worry about it, Phil is it? I’ll be right here and he won’t damage the violin in any way,” Father said as he continued to give him his Brucie smile.

The employee scoffed once again and turned to get the violin with the bow and handed it to Damian. The employee watched Damian like a hawk, to make sure he did not damage the violin.

Damian scowled at him as he gently took the violin from the employee's hands. He looked at the violin. It was beautiful. The wood was of high quality and it was stained beautifully. 

He let his fingers graced over the string and saw how sturdy they were. This violin was a piece of art. Damian took the bow and played a few notes, noting that the violin was out of tune.

Damian could see the employee chuckle at him and he scowled. He looked at his father and saw him glaring at the employee.

He took the violin and started tuning it. Damian did not take long to tune it, perhaps a minute or two.

Then Damian closed his eyes and positioned the violin in the correct position. He played the beginning of Paganini Caprice no.24 Enjoying the notes that came from the instrument. Damian always loved the chaotic nature of the beginning of the solo. He felt the music express his feelings of indecisiveness and worry.

Damian felt free.

He only played the violin for a minute, but he had missed the feeling of the strings beneath his fingers. Damian always enjoyed the almost crying sound of the violin. He always felt that he could express the feelings that he was never allowed to have in the League.

Slowly, Damian let the last note hang in the air as he stopped playing the instrument. He opened his eyes and saw the look of disbelief on the employee face.

Damian couldn’t help but smirked at the employee reaction. He looked at his Father and Damian was shocked at his father's reaction.

He actually looked proud. Father was actually smiling at him and Damian couldn’t remember the last time his father smiled at him.

Damian put the violin back in his case. His Father approached him and put his hand on his shoulder and gave it a squeeze. 

“Do you want the violin?” Father asked as he gave him a small smile.

Damian looked at his father and nodded, at a loss for words.

“We’ll take it,” Father smirked at the employee.

He grabbed the violin case and let his father deal with the business transactions.

Once again Damian felt exhausted. He overdid it by playing such a complicated piece. 

He looked down at his hands, thankful that they did not shake throughout the piece. It would have been a disaster and Damian would have embarrassed himself in front of Father.

That is something that he could not live down.

Damian felt his father approached him and he looked up and saw his father stare at him with a smile still on his face. 

“Where to next?” Father asked him as he grabbed the case from Damian's hands.

He frowned at his father not sure how to answer.

“Next?” Damian asked.

“Yeah, what else do you want?” Father asked, giving him an encouraging smile.

What did Damian want? 

He could think of many things he wanted.

He wanted to spend more time with Grayson. 

Damian wanted to make his father proud. 

He wanted the headaches to stop.

Damian didn’t want to be tired anymore.

He wanted to be healthy again.

There were so many things Damian wanted, but none of those things were something that Father could give him.

“I do not want anything else,” Damian admitted quietly. 

Father frowned slightly as he stared at him. Damian fidgeted with his hands again. Not sure what to do. 

He responded with a shrug.

“Well...maybe we could grab something to eat,” Father suggested at last.

Damian stomach knotted at the mere thought of eating something. Whatever he ate he was sure that would not settle in his stomach.

“...I would rather go home. I am quite tired,” Damian said, trying to redirect his father’s attention. Father's shoulders dropped as he nodded.

“Okay, that fine. Let’s head home, son,” Father said as he squeezed Damian’s shoulders once again.

Damian nodded as he followed his father out of the mall.

They were silent, but Damian felt comfortable.

He sat in the passenger seat of the car and looked at his father.

It seemed like he wanted to say something to him, but was unsure what to say.

“Thank you, Father,” finally Damian said, breaking the silence. 

Father nodded at him and ruffled his hair.

“Anytime.”

_

When Damian arrived at the manor, he headed straight to the library. 

It was important for him to continue his research.

He needed to solved what was wrong with him, before he inconvenienced his father.

His father was very kind to him today. Damian didn’t want to betray that kindness by becoming a burden.

As soon as he arrived at the library he froze at the door.

Because Drake stood there in the library holding his list.

“Tell me,” Drake said in a soft tone, eyebrows furrowed. “What’s wrong?”

Damian couldn’t believe it.

Drake had found his list.

He wasn’t able to hide it well enough.

Damian failed.

Drake knew that he was sick.

He knew.

At that moment, Damian felt tears go down his face.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey everyone! We finally get to see Bruce! Hopefully I did it justice. The chapter it's longer than usual so I hope y'all are happy! We are getting closer to finding out what's up with Damian so I won't be answering if you guessed correctly or not. I don't wanna give away any spoilers 😂😂, people have gotten close thought. I fixed up my tumblr so you can find me @brokenhearted-queen. Thanks Cait for being an amazing beta!


	19. Chapter 19

Tim knew better than to snoop.

He was just curious.

Damian was working with some paperwork last time he saw him.

And well...Tim needed to know what was happening.

Now, he had a crying Damian.

He wasn’t sure what to do. If he was being honest with himself, Tim wanted to give Damian a hug. But he feared if he touched him he would get bit. Damian wasn’t the hugging type. 

“Give me that!” Damian cried as he attempted to snatch the list from Tim’s hands.

“Damian,” Tim sighed, as he stepped away from Damian. “Just tell me.”

Tim stared as Damian shook his head and kept crying.

"No, no," Damian cried, hyperventilating a little, "You're not supposed to know! You're not supposed to find out!"

He approached his brother and tried to place his hand on his shoulder, but Damian slapped his hand away.

“No! Don’t touch me,” Damian screamed, he pulled at his hair a little and whispered, “this cannot be happening. I was so careful.” 

Tim felt awful, he hadn’t meant to blindside Damian. The last thing he wanted to do was to make his little brother cry.

He was just curious and looked at where that got him.

“Damian, I’m sorry. Let’s sit down, okay?” Tim tried again this time pointing at the couch.

He was relieved when Damian nodded and headed to the couch. His breathing was better now. Silent tears still made their way down his face, but he looked a little better. 

Of course, it was Tim who almost made Damian spiral into a panic attack. It’s not like their relationship wasn’t strained enough.

Tim stayed quiet, he wanted to ask him a million questions, but he waited for Damian to speak first. He wanted to let Damian come to him, to tell him whatever he felt like.

If he pushed now, Damian might just shut down. 

Damian took a deep breath and harshly rubbed his face. “You found it,” Damian said slowly, almost whispering.

Tim simply nodded. There was no point in denying it.

“You must be happy,” Damian stated.

"What?" Tim said, startled. He looked at Damian with wide eyes before he furrowed his eyebrows. 

Why would Damian think that?

Damian scoffed as he stood up and started pacing back and forth in front of the couch. Tim could see Damian’s hands shake.

“You can show everyone I failed. Now, you have proof about how weak I am,” Damian snarled.

Wow.

Oh wow.

Did Damian really think so low of Tim?

Tim looked at Damian, not sure what to do. He couldn’t just hug the kid. Tim was not Dick after all.

Tim decided just to tell the truth. 

“No , Damian. I’m just worried about you.” 

Damian scoffed at him and started to pace again.

“Come on, Damian, I just want to help. I know something’s happening,” Tim sighed and started to rub the back of his neck, “I just want you to trust me.”

His little brother stopped and stared at him with his eyebrows furrowed. His hand shook as he started to bite his thumb softly.

Tim waited, not wanting to pressure Damian into talking to him. He stared down at the list in his hands, worried about the meaning behind it. 

“Damian, please,” he pleaded as he handed the list to Damian, “Let me help.”

His shoulders slump as he sat down next to him. 

He looked down at his list, and Tim saw him crumble the list slightly.

Tim hated that look of resignation on Damian’s face. 

Not asking questions wasn’t working. He needed to change his strategy.

“Why do you have that list?” Tim asked.

“Do not be a fool,” Damian snapped, “you know what this list means.”

Tim shook his head, as he ignored Damian's insult. He knew that his brother was just trying to deflect, but he wasn’t going to let that happen. 

“I prefer it if you tell me.”

Damian shook his head and stared at his feet.

“I am feeling unwell…” Damian started.

Tim's eyes widened slightly, he knew that Damian wasn’t feeling well, but it was another thing to have Damian admit it.

“What do you mean?” Tim asked. He needed more details. They all were under the assumption that Damian was depressed.

“I’ve been feeling ill,” Damian said as he set down the list on Tim’s lap. “These are the symptoms...I have noticed.”

Tim looked at the list. He had already read it. If he was being honest, it terrified him. Tim was surprised no one had noticed these symptoms. They noticed some of these, but not all of them.

“How long have you been feeling this way?” Tim asked.

Damian would not look at him. He kept looking at the floor, so Tim reached out and touched his shoulder. 

“I do not know…” Damian said finally.

Tim eyebrows furrowed as he stared at Damian.

“What do you mean?”

Damian started to fiddle with his fingers. Tim looked at him and waited for him to answer. 

“It’s difficult to tell,” Damian said with a shrug, “At first, I just thought I was overworking myself and I adjusted accordingly. But as you can see it did not help.”

Tim stared at his brother, surprised at what Damian just said.

“Has it been happening for a while?” Tim had to ask. He needed to know how blind they were. 

Damian rubbed the back of his neck as he shrugged once more.

“Yes...I cannot remember the last time I felt…” Damian trailed off for a moment. Tim noticed his hands shaking once again, “like myself.”

Tim took a sharp breath. He didn’t know how to feel about what his brother just said. 

Damian had been dealing with everything by himself.

And everyone just thought he was depressed.

Some detectives they were.

Tim couldn't help but scoff.

“Okay, let’s get B and we can take you to Leslie,” Tim said while he gave him a reassuring squeeze on Damian’s shoulders.

Damian shoved his hand off and stood up.

“You cannot tell, Father!” Damian said with a scowled.

“Damian-”

“No! You can’t! I’ll accept your help, but you cannot tell Father. He already sees me as weak because of my fall. I do not need you to confirm my weakness to him,” Damian said as he gave Tim an imploring look.

Tim wanted Damian to trust him. He was worried about scaring him away. If Tim told Bruce, what would Damian do? How would Bruce react to all of this? It might do more harm than good at this point.

“Okay Damian, I won’t tell Bruce,” Tim said.

“I need your word,” Damian said with a glare.

Tim nodded. “Yes, Damian. You have my word.”

Tim just hoped this was the best decision. He wanted to help his little brother. Tim hoped that he could help him.

He really hoped he could.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hello everyone! Happy holidays! I really struggled with this chapter but thanks to Cait (Cdelphiki and if your reading my fic you already know this amazing writer 🤣🤣) It is 10000% times better! She the best 👏Tell me what y'all think! Find me at tumblr @brokenhearted-queen.


	20. Chapter 20

Damian was surprised that Drake agreed to not inform Father of his condition.

He expected him to go as soon as he could.

Instead, Drake stayed and they worked together to figure out what made Damian sick.

Odd.

But Damian would not be idiotic enough to spoil this opportunity.

He looked up and saw Drake looking at the symptoms list with his eyebrows furrowed.

The list had been slowly extending as Damian realized he had more symptoms than he thought. Drake had been extremely insightful in noticing a difference in his behavior.

In a different scenario Damian would have been offended. At that point, he was simply thankful to have more information to work with. 

Now, they were working on a list of possible illnesses. Neither of them were naive enough to think this was a simple cold. 

At the moment, they had a better idea at what he didn’t have than what it could be. His symptoms were all over the place, which made it difficult to pinpoint what was wrong.

“Maybe we should look into different types of cancers?” Drake asked as he crossed out another option on their list.

Damian simply shook his head.

“Come on, ” Drake huffed at him as he rolled his eyes, “we have to explore all options.”

“Bloodwork clears me from leukemia, lymphoma, prostrate, colon, pancreas and so on,” Damian said with a scowl as he picked up his blood work and shoved it at him, “to be able to screen for additional cancers we will need equipment that we do not have in the cave” 

Drake opened his mouth and closed it with a snap. He looked away and nodded sharply. 

He was glad that Drake did not fight him on the matter. Damian was not prepared to include anyone else. For now, he felt comfortable working with Drake. His brother followed his lead and did not treat him like a kid. It felt nice to know that Drake trusted his abilities even though he was ill.

“We have to exhaust all of our options first,” Damian said as he huffed at Drake.

“I know, Damian,” Drake said with a worried look, “we will keep working on it.”

His brother was a detective, Drake was on par with Father detective skills. His brother was so skillful that he has earned Ra’s respect, which is not something easily earned. 

He had tried to earn his grandfather's respect, but no matter what he did, Damian never was enough.

Damian shook his head. They had a long way to go. But Damian felt that both of them had made progress.

After a day working with Drake, Damian felt hopeful.

_

He stared at the paperwork in front of him, the throbbing in his head made it difficult to focus on the word in front of him. His migraine had been getting worse as the night progressed. Damian rubbed his temples as he stared down at the paperwork. 

Damian knew that drinking water would help him with his headache. He hoped that would help him. 

Migraine medication had barely made a dent in his pain. Damian looked at his water bottler, picked it up and drank half of it. 

He blinked a couple times, trying to eliminate the fogginess that his migraine created.

His shoulders slumped as he let out a big sigh. Damian put some pressure on his forehead as he did some deep breathing exercise.

Damian startled when he felt a hand on his shoulder. He looked up and saw Drake with two bowls in his hands. He could feel his nausea start as his stomach began to churned.

“Come on, Damian. You haven’t been eating much lately,” Drake said as he placed the bowl in front of him.

Damian’s skin turned sickly as he smelled the soup placed in front of him. He shook his head as he pushed the bowl away.

“I appreciate the gesture, Drake,” Damian said as noticed Drake’s eyebrows furrowed, “but I simply do not have the appetite.”

“I know Damian, I know,” Drake said in a soft tone, pushing the soup bowl towards him, “but you need to eat something.”

Damian scowled at him. He knew Drake was right, as much as he loathed to admit it. 

He stared at his brother as he bit his lower lip. 

Damian was not an idiot. He knew that if he did not eat, he would lose too much weight. If that were to happen then his family would know he was sick. That would also send him straight to the hospital, which would destroy all their hard work.

He huffed and took a spoonful of soup. 

Drake's shoulders dropped as he let out a breath. A second later, he joined Damian and began eating his soup. 

Damian rolled his eyes at Drake's foolishness. Even if he could not eat, it did not mean that Drake's diet should be affected. There was no reason for Drake to suffer alongside him.

After all, that would ruin the carefully constructed vitamin plan that Damian had created for him.

No need for his hard work to go to waste.

He was able to eat half of his bowl of soup. 

-  
Damian’s day did not start great. He had set some time aside in the morning to work on his paintings. 

It was difficult for him to convince Drake to join him later on in the library. His brother wanted to find out what was happening to him as quickly as possible, but as Christmas approached, he had less time to work on the paintings. He needed to begin Father’s and Pennyworth’s gifts. All his brothers gifts were in a state were he felt comfortable finishing later on. 

But his hands would not stop shaking. 

He waited and waited but it seemed to get worse. Every time he attempted to make a line his hands shook too much to control his movements.

Lines were supposed to be straight, but it seemed his hands could not understand such a simple consent. 

Damian shook his head as he looked at the clock.

Drake should be there any moment now.

He began cleaning up his art supplies and hid his sketches in his book. Damian made his way to the bookcase that hid his gifts. After making sure that his sketches were well hidden, he walked towards the coach to wait for his brother. 

Damian waited as he felt his stomach start to churn, accompanied by a wave of nausea. He ignored it, hoping it would go away but as time went on it got worse.

It seemed like that was a common theme of his day. 

When the nausea got unbearable, Damian stumbled to the bathroom. He made it with enough time to flip open the lid and spill the contents of his stomach.

Damian has got accustomed to the bitter and sour taste that vomiting caused, what he most struggled with was the way his stomach would cramp.

He continued to dry heave as he felt someone rub circles on his back. Damian looked up to see Drake awkwardly pat his shoulder. He was about to make a comment, when Damian felt his stomach churned once again, as he dry heaved in the toilet bowl.

Damian finished dry heaving and looked up at Drake with his eyebrows furrowed. Drake handed him a cup of water which Damian quickly took and washed out the taste from his mouth.

“Why did you touch my back?” Damian asked with his eyebrows furrowed.

Drake's head tilted to the side.

“It’s supposed to be a comfort thing…” Drake trailed off sounding confused. “Whenever I was sick Bruce, Alfred or Dick used to rub my back. I don’t know, it’s supposed to be soothing.”

“Oh,” Damian whispered as he looked at the floor.

He had not experienced that before. In the league, being ill was seen as a weakness, there was no comfort to be found while sick. In the manor he had denied his weakness and tended to isolate himself.

A hand on his shoulders interrupted his thoughts. He looked up and saw Drake giving a small sad smile. 

“Come on, let’s go sit down,” Drake said as he gently helped him up.

Damian nodded and let his brother guide him toward the couch. His heart throbbed. When had he become so comfortable with Drake? He'd not only begun to tolerate, but to some extent respect his brother

He hummed in response to whatever Drake told him. 

Damian was starting to enjoy spending time with his brother. 

_

Another long day of researching and Damian was feeling it. He was exhausted, and as the day went on and turned into night, he felt very unwell.

Every time he blinked it felt like he would fall asleep.

But he could not, he still needed to double check his hypothesis. It was a pretty good possibility but he still needed to confirm with the...numbers...or was it the symptoms? 

He heard Drake clear his throat and Damian looked up at his brother. But Drake looked slightly blurry. Damian rubbed his eyes.

“Yes?” Damian asked as he looked at Drake.

“Damian...you should head to bed. I can handle it,” Drake said as he squeezed Damian’s shoulders.

Damian shook his head as he picked up some paperwork and attempted to read it. Everytime he tried to read the words, they would blur together. He felt his frustration rise as he rubbed his eyes roughly. 

It should not be this hard for Damian to read. He should not be struggling this much.

He felt his eyelids drop and snapped his head up. Damian could feel his entire body feel heavy. His head was dropping, as he struggled to stay awake. 

If he closed his eyes for just one second...he would be fine. 

Damian felt someone lifted him. He opened his eyes, startled. Drake was carrying him.

“Shh, it’s okay, Damian. I’m just taking you to your room,” Tim said in a soothing voice.

He nodded, as he let himself be carried. He was too tired to fight. Damian knew that Drake would not harm him.

Damian felt safe in his brother's arms.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hello everyone! What is this? A decent update schedule what? I know crazy! Tell me what you think about this chapter. Tim and Damian bounding is awesome. Thanks Cait for betareading for me she is the best! Find me at @brokenhearted-queen on tumblr if you wanna yell at me or have any questions. Thank you all!


	21. Chapter 21

Tim didn’t know what to do.

Damian and him had been searching for days now and they weren’t any closer to figuring out what was happening.

His little brother was getting sicker and sicker as time went on. Tim was getting desperate at this point. He needed to find out what was happening to Damian. At this rate he was worried that this illness would kill his brother.

Test after test came back negative. Tim hated to admit it, but he felt stuck. Damian did his best to help with the research but as time progressed he barely had enough energy to stay awake. He couldn’t blame him for not helping. Tim felt like he was working by himself.

He was used to working in high stress situations. In some cases, his family lives was on the line. But to Tim, this felt different. After all there was no big bad villain to beat up. This was something unknown, with no real person to fight. Tim was sure of it, he tested Damian against all venoms and poisons known to men, and none of them were present in Damian’s system.

Damian was not happy with him doing these tests. According to him, he was trained against all poisons and venoms in the league. 

"This is ridiculous," Damian had snapped, when Tim ran his tenth test for poisons and venoms, "the league trained me to have immunity against all poisons and venoms." Tim just shook his head. Damian was such a brat, sometimes.

Tim knew that Damian wasn’t lying about his League training. He hoped he was. Tim didn’t want to imagine the kind of pain the League made him go through. 

He closed his eyes tightly as he squeezed his fist till his knuckles went white. 

Tim needed to focus. He couldn’t be wasting his time thinking of what happened to Damian in the League. Damian looked sicker and sicker as time went on. Tim was worried about the amount of weight he was losing. It was happening at an alarming rate. He tried to get Damian to eat more, but he had a very difficult time keeping the food down. He opened his eyes and shook his hands.

Damian sickness had taken over everything Tim was doing. He hadn’t touched any of his case files for days. Too busy, as he tried to help Damian. He knew that he couldn't keep this up in the long run. But Patrol was another matter, he couldn't simply stay home. That would bring too much suspicion. Bruce would ask too many questions. Tim had no idea how to answer these questions. Then Bruce would find out about everything and he would have betrayed Damian’s trust.

What else could he do?

Tim was stuck and he couldn’t bring any of his family members in to help. He felt like he was running against the wind. He wasn’t getting anywhere.

He sighed as he looked through all of the test results. It was obvious that Damian was sick, but nothing was showing on the test results.

It didn’t make any sense.

Something should have showed up in the blood work. A sign, a hint, anything to guide them in the right direction.

But they got nothing.

Zip. 

Nada.

Just a list of symptoms that shouldn’t be together. Tim rubbed his face as he looked down at the list. It was growing, a mixture of Tim’s rapid handwriting and Damian’s elegant but imperfect cursive writing. Every time Tim saw his brother's hands shake he felt a tug in his heart.

How had they not noticed sooner?

Why has no one called Damian out?

Why was it Damian who was sick?

Hadn't he suffered enough?

Tim shook his head and huffed. Honestly, they were better things to do than to lament on what’s done. 

He kept glancing at the test. Tim knew that his next step was getting Damian an MRI, but he didn’t know how. As soon as he showed up at Leslie’s clinic she was going to tell Bruce. If they went to a regular hospital, they would take the risk of being recognized and exposed to the media. Neither options were feasible.

How was Tim going to help him?

Tim needed help himself. 

Damian was like a ticking time bomb that Tim needed to stop.

The problem was that he had no idea how to start.

He could say he was a good detective. Great detective even, but he was no medical professional. This was not his area of expertise. Damian needed an expert and Tim was unsure if he could provide that for him. 

Tim rubbed his neck as he let the paperwork fall on his desk. He stood up abruptly and the chair fell backward in a loud crash. Tim began to pace as he pulled his hair in frustration. 

What could Damian have?

Think. 

Think.

He thought as he hit his head with his fist.

Cancer? It was a scary thought, but bloodwork had discarded many of the possibilities.

“Tumors are a thing,” Tim mumbled to himself as he continued to pace.

No MRI, no way to confirm. He didn’t think there was a different way to tell without the use of an MRI machine. 

Maybe they could sneak into Leslie’s clinic after it closed.

Tim shook his head as his hand began to shake slightly.

No, no, that would be stupid. Leslie would notice if something was off in her clinic. She would call Bruce right away to find out what happened.

Tim felt his heart beating out of his chest. He could hear the crescendo of his heart beat in his ears.

Damian was getting sicker, he even let Tim carry him to bed!

He thought he was going to get bit, but no, Damian just let him carry him.

To Tim, that was proof that Damian was getting worse, fast.

Otherwise he wouldn’t have let Tim carry him. Damian would just spout nonsense of how he was no child and did not need to be carried.

Tim could feel his breathing get shallower as his thoughts continued to consume him.

What would happen if he couldn’t find out what was wrong with Damian?

_Thump. Thump._

Would Tim be able to fix it?

_Thump. Thump. Thump._

Would Damian die once again?

Tim gasped as he tried to breathe in. He stumbled backwards as he tumbled to his bed. He put his shaking hand on his chest as he tried to gasp for air. His heart was beating rapidly, Tim could feel it thumping against his chest. Tears were running down his face as he tried to calm down.

Oh god.

Was he having a heart attack?

He couldn’t breathe.

Tim tried to gasp for air as his panic grew. 

He could hear his heartbeat.

He could feel his heartbeat.

He _couldn't_ breathe.

  
  
  


**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thanks Cait once again! She the best y'all! I hope you enjoyed this chapter. I really love all your comments and I appreciate all your kudos. I'll do my best to update next week. I'm in finals so it's honestly going to be crazy. Hopefully I can keep this up! I been doing really good lately having a decent update schedule. Poor Tim! Next chapter I got a surprise for y'all! Find me at tumblr @brokenhearted-queen


	22. Chapter 22

Alfred was always worried about his family. This should not come as a surprise to anyone. After all, his family decided the best thing to do for the city was to dress up in silly costumes and fight crime. Instead of investing their time and money in charity work like any sane person would.

He knew that convincing Bruce to stop was impossible, after all his boy was too stubborn, but now the children were involved. That brought a whole different kind of worry. Alfred could not stop them either, no matter how hard he tried or the heartbreak he faced.

The main worry Alfred had was not the people who were out on patrol, but the youngest member of the family. Alfred might be getting older in age, but he was not blind.

He could see that Damian was not well. Damian rarely ate, and when he did eat, it was very small portions. 

Alfred could see how Damian had changed over the last few months. It troubled him greatly. Damian was never a bright carefree child like Richard had been, but he was kind and would search for his company. Recently, however, it was a miracle if Alfred saw him around. No longer playing chess with him nor joining for a cup of tea. Even the shrubbery was left intact, and for once Alfred missed seeing him train in the yard.

At first, Alfred simply thought that Damian had outgrown spending time with him. After all, children would think they were ‘too cool’ to ‘hang out’ with him, but that was not the case. It seemed that most days Damian did not have the energy to move around. 

He missed his energetic grandchild, who enjoyed destroying the shrubbery with his sword, but spent hours in the garden helping him tend for his roses.

Alfred sighed as he continued to polished the silverware.

There must be something he could do to bring back his boy.

He began to put away the silverware. It was far too late to be polishing them. 

Alfred made quick work of cleaning up the dinning room area. He had an early start tomorrow morning and he was assigned sleeping duties. In other words, Alfred's job for the night was to rest. 

Master Bruce's duty schedule was ingenious. It had forced everyone to take some rest and had minimized injuries related to burnout.

The only person who had a problem with following the schedule was Master Bruce himself. Alfred saw how hard he worked to give his children a break, but often forgot he also deserved a break himself. 

It was good that Master Dick enforced Master Bruce's break. The oldest child always had the talent to make Bruce slow down.

Alfred made his way through the hall as he thought about the lineup for tomorrow. They had to move around the schedule since Master Damian was benched. Master Jason's day off was changed but he did not seem too upset about it. Everyone seemed to be more anxious about Master Damian’s condition, not that Alfred could blame them. Master Timothy was taking his assignment from Master Bruce seriously. It was rare to see Master Timothy without Master Damian nowadays. Alfred hoped that they would take this opportunity to work through their differences. 

He was almost to his room when he startled. A loud noise was coming from the direction of Master Timothy’s room. Alfred frozen momentarily, unsure what to do. He ran towards his grandson's room and opened the door. Alfred's eyes widened as he took the scene before him. 

There in front of him, Master Timothy was in his bedgasping for breath as tears ran down his face. Alfred rushed towards his grandson and helped him sit up.

“Come on, Master Timothy, I need you to take a deep breath,” Alfred said as he put Timothy’s hands on his chest. “Follow my lead.”

“I can’t,” Timothy wheezed as he failed to follow Alfred’s instructions. 

“Yes, you can Master Timothy. Let’s try once more,” Alfred said his voice pleading for Timothy to listen.

Master Timothy shook his head desperately. At this point, the young lad was sobbing so hard that his whole body shook. Alfred could recognize the sign of a panic attack, and Master Timothy was in full blown panic. 

“Tim, tell me five square items in your room,” Alfred said, hoping this technique would yield better results. 

“What?” Tim gasped as he stared at Alfred wide eyed.

“Come on, Lad. Tell me five square items in your room. I know you can do it,” Alfred said while he rubbed Timothy’s back.

“Uhm...my pillow, books,” Tim said as he looked around the room gasping, “TV, bookshelf and laptop.”

“Good, good,” Alfred said as he continued to rub Timothy back, “now tell me three things you can hear.”

Timothy nodded shakily, as he took deep breaths. He was still crying but was no longer trembling. Alfred could tell he was calming down from his panic attack but needed a bit of time.

“I...can hear your voice and my breathing,” Master Timothy said softly as he continued to focus on his breathing, “I think...I hear Titus barking.”

Alfred nodded with a small smile. Titus usually slept with Master Damian but some nights he enjoyed running around making a ruckus. 

“You are right, Master Tim, it seems Titus is up and about tonight. Now, just to finish off, tell me about two soft things you can feel.”

Master Tim nodded as he moved his hand around the bed, patting it around. He got a hold of his blanket and looked at Alfred.

“My blanket is pretty soft,” Timothy said, as he rubbed his face. He looked around for a few seconds and saw a sweater thrown carelessly over his bed, “ the sweater is very comfortable as well.”

Alfred could see Master Tim breathing normally. He was no longer crying and he looked a lot better. He stood up and looked around the room and spotted a bottle of water. He opened it and handed it to Master Tim and got a mumbled ‘thanks’ in return.

He simply stared at his grandson as he drank his water. Alfred was worried and he could not help but wonder what triggered the attack. It was late at night, so perhaps it was a nightmare. It would not be surprising if that were the case. All of them suffer from their fair share of nightmares. It simply came with the job. 

Alfred waited in silence as he allowed Master Timothy to gather his thoughts. He did not want to overwhelm the boy. Triggering another would not be useful in this situation. 

So, he waited.

And waited.

Master Timothy sat there and just stared at his hands. Alfred realized that he was not going to get further without giving Master Timothy a slight push. He stood up and squeezed Timothy’s shoulders.

“Come along, I am going to make us a cup of tea.” 

-

Half an hour later both he and Master Timothy were in the kitchen enjoying a cup of peppermint tea. Both of them were quiet simply sipping at their cup. Alfred looked at his grandson and his heart was full of worry.

Master Tim's eyes were full of sadness, his shoulders were slumped in defeat. No child should ever look that way, but especially not his grandchildren. Alfred reached out and squeezed Timothy’s hand.

“What happened?’ Alfred asked, his tone worried.

Timothy sighed as he ran his fingers through his hair. Alfred could see the dark circles under his eyes, more prominent than ever before. 

“I don’t know what to do,” Master Tim admitted after a few seconds.

“What do you mean?”

“Is just,” Tim said with a huff as he put his head in his hands, “ I can’t tell you.”

“Oh?” Alfred's eyebrow rose in question.

“I promise. I wouldn’t tell.” Timothy mumbled behind his hand.

“Ah, you were sworn into secrecy,” Alfred said as he took a sip of his tea.

Timothy nodded as he looked down at his tea. Alfred hummed in understanding. Secrecy in this family was a problem. In most cases it causes more trouble than it solves. 

“But that secret that you are keeping, it seems it is causing you a lot of stress.”

“I know...I know...I just don’t know what to do,” Master Tim said as he put his hand down and started picking at his hand. 

“Perhaps, I can offer some advice,” Alfred offered in a soft tone.

“It just...Alfie, I can’t. I’m just very stuck and everything is a mess and I can’t do anything to fix it,” Timothy started rambling.

Alfred nodded at Master Timothy even if he did not make much sense. He squeezed Timothy’s hand and it stopped Timothy rambling in his tracks.

“Now, now Master Tim, we do not want to trigger another panic attack,” Alfred said with a small smile.

Tim nodded quickly as he took some calming breaths. Alfred watched as his grandson took a gulp of his tea. To him, Timothy looked extremely lost and unsure what to do next. It was clear that Timothy wanted to tell him what was happening but his promise restricted him.

“Master Timothy, I understand how important it is for you to keep your word, but it seems it will be more beneficial for you to share your worries. You should not shoulder all the burden.”

“But I promised D...I mean them that I wouldn't tell Bruce,” Tim said looking wide eyed.

Alfred chuckled a bit before taking a sip of his tea.

“Well my dear boy, it seems that you are in luck. After all, I am not Master Bruce.” Alfred said, raising his eyebrow in challenge.

Timothy was silent for a moment. He brought his hand to his mouth and started to bite at his fingernails. Alfred wanted to tell Timothy to stop such a dreadful habit but he feared that this comment would redirect the entire conversation. 

“That is a loophole...that isn’t fair,” Timothy mumbled to himself as he kept biting his nails. “I am stuck and we aren’t going anywhere. We need help…” Timothy finished mumbling looking up at him.

Alfred could see how serious Timothy was. His shoulders held straight as he hand tightened into a fist. They were shaking slightly, showing Alfred how anxious Master Timothy was about the situation. He lifted his cup of tea as he waited.

“Damian is sick.”

Alfred slowly lowered his cup as he stared at Timothy in confusion.

“Master Damian concussion should be healing soon. At this point, him being benched from patrolled is more precaution than anything. If your referring to his signs of depression, well-”

“No, Alfie he is actually sick,” Master Timothy interrupted sharply.

Alfred's eyebrows furrowed as he felt his heart race a bit.

If Master Damian was sick then he would've told him?

Right?

“Is he suffering from a cold or the flu? I have not heard him coughing, perhaps a stomach bug, he has not been eating properly,” Alfred said trying to figure out what was wrong with his boy.

“Alfred...whatever this is...is very serious,” Master Tim, confessed softly, “Damian told me that he has been feeling unwell for months now.”

“Oh…” Alfred whispered. 

Had they been blind for so long?

“Do you have any ideas what is ailing Master Damian?” He asked after a few moments of silence.

“That’s the thing Alfred,” Timothy said as he stood up and started pacing around the kitchen. “We tested him for multiple viruses, illness, diseases and even for multiple types of poisons and venoms. It has all come back negative. His symptoms list makes no sense! He is getting worse and worse and I don’t know how to help.” 

“If that is the case we need to work together to help Master Damian. We will need to get Doctor Leslie involved and inform Master Bruce about this situation.”

“But Alfred! I promised Damian I wouldn’t tell Bruce. He is going to hate me!” Master Tim pleaded as he stopped pacing.

Alfred stood up and walked up to him. He put his hands on his shoulders. Alfred could tell that Timothy was worried and he wanted to keep the relationship he created with Damian. 

But this was serious.

“Do not worry Master Timothy. I will be the one to inform Master Bruce about Damian’s condition. We will need all the assistance that we can get. Now, please get me all the results of the test that you have already run. I would like to see what we are dealing with.”

Timothy nodded as he went to his room to get all the documents.

As soon as Master Timothy left, Alfred collapsed on the chair. He rubbed his face as he let out a weary sigh.

It seems he would not do his sleeping duties after all.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hello Hello! I'm Back! sorry for the delay. I was hit by finals, then some emotional stuff and to finished up the bow I had really bad writer block. But anyway! My surprise was Alfred POV what do y'all think? An adult finally knows!! Honestly it's going to be bumpy ride from know on. Thank you Cdelphiki for betareading for me! I appreciate every kudos and every comment you guys leave. They honestly make my day. Find me @brokenhearted-queen at tumblr!


	23. Chapter 23

Damian was confused. 

Usually by the time he went to the library, Drake was waiting for him. But when he arrived, there was no one in sight.

With furrowed eyebrows he made his way to Drake’s room. 

Was there something wrong with Drake?

He didn’t believe that his illness was contagious.

If that was the case, everyone in the manor would be ill by now.

Damian peeked in quietly. Drake lay in bed fast asleep, snoring so loud Damian wondered how he hadn’t woken himself up. It was odd to find Drake asleep. He tended to be the last one to go to bed and the first to wake up. 

He hesitantly moved the doorway, unsure on how to proceed next. They had a meeting, Drake would be the one to get upset if someone was late or skip. 

The problem was that Drake looked exhausted. His sleeping schedule was bad before they started their search. Damian could not remember when was the last time he saw Drake asleep.

But Drake had been working overtime trying to find out what made him ill. 

It was his fault that Drake was so tired.

He needed to keep a better eye on Drake’s health.

Damian decided to let his brother be. He would take this opportunity to work on Pennyworth’s Christmas gift instead. 

Pleased to see his brother resting, Damian made his way back to the library.

-

Pennyworth’s Christmas gift was more difficult than expected. His trembling hands were an issue, especially while drawing, and Pennyworth’s gift required a steadier hand than everyone else's. He was redoing the family portrait, but this time including both Pennyworth and Todd. He didn’t know why they were missing from the last portrait, but perhaps that was Father's decision.

Today he was drawing the outlines of Todd’s body. It was difficult for him to decide what kind of art medium he would use for Pennyworth’s gift. He was aware that oil paints would look the best and last the longest, but working with charcoal was easier and he could work around mistakes.

He dragged his pencil along the side of Jason's face as he attempted to shade it.

Damian grit his teeth when his hand trembled, and his pencil strayed too far. He quickly erased the line and tried again, only to make the same mistake. 

At this rate, would he even finish the gifts by Christmas?

Damian slammed his pencil down as huffed.

He started to rub his face as he let out a weary sigh.

His brothers’ gifts were not done yet, either. They still required some detailed work, but he wanted to get to a place where he was comfortable with both his gifts for Father and Pennyworth. 

He wanted to be able to give them something even if it wasn’t perfect.

Damian sighed as his hands trembled slightly. 

It was not fair.

Damian just wanted to finish his drawing.

He wanted to give his family the Christmas gift they deserved.

But his hands would not let him.

His hands would not let him do a lot of things properly.

He couldn’t write. He couldn’t draw. He couldn't play the violin.

Everytime he tried to practice the violin his hands shook, distorting all the music he played. It made him sound like a beginner. Not like someone who had mastered many difficult pieces. 

If Father were to hear him playing, he would surely be disappointed. Damian avoided playing the violin when his father was home. He wanted to practice on good days, when his hands did not shake, but lately he'd been using those days to work on his gifts. He felt his frustration rise as the days went on and he did not get better.

His eyebrows furrowed as he stared down at Pennyworth’s gift. Lately, he had been focusing on the gifts, violin, and his illness. He had paid no mind to patrol or even to any of the cases.

When Damian thought about it, he could not remember when the last time he got an update on the case was. He didn’t believe that they made great progress on the case. Drake was the main detective on the case and he was focused on finding out what made Damian ill. He doubted that he had looked at the files since Damian told him what was happening.

If someone died because Drake was too focused on Damian’s illness...

It would be his fault.

Damian clenched his trembling hands.

He should ask Drake when he woke up.

For now he needed to focus on Pennyworth’s drawing.

After all, his hands are doing better than they had for days now.

-

Damian had been working on the drawing for at at least an hour when someone knocked at the doorway. He quickly hid the drawing inside his notebook and looked up to see Pennyworth standing in the doorway, waiting for him.

“Yes?” Damian asked as he raised an eyebrow.

“Would you like to join me for tea?” Alfred asked with a small smile.

Damian was about to reject him but closed his mouth after a moment. He had not spent time with Pennyworth in a while and he kind of missed it.

“Yes, that sounds lovely,” Damian said as he stood up.

He stopped momentarily. What would he do with his drawings? After a few seconds, he shrugged, and took his sketchbook with him, as they slowly made their way to the kitchen, in a comfortable silence 

Once in the kitchen, Pennyworth started preparing the tea, so Damian sat down and waited for him to finish, happy to just watch him work.

After a minute or so, Pennyworth handed him a cup of Earl black tea, done perfectly to his liking.

Damian stared as Pennyworth stirred his cup of tea. He could tell Pennyworth was tense. His shoulders were stiff and his eyebrows were slightly furrowed. Damian was nervous. What did Pennyworth want?

“Master Damian, I want to speak to you about an important matter,” Pennyworth said, as he stopped stirring his tea.

Damian furrowed his eyebrows in confusion. 

What was Pennyworth talking about?

Could it be he knew he was ill?

Damian shook his head slightly. 

He couldn’t know.

There was no way Pennyworth figured out he was ill.

Damian had been hiding his symptoms so well.

Drake had only found out because he found the list. 

He was being ridiculous.

“Yes, Pennyworth?” Damian asked hesitantly.

“I noticed you’ve not been eating lately.”

“Oh," Damian stammered, "I've been trying a new fasting diet.”

“Master Damian, do not try and fool me,” Pennyworth said as he lifted up his cup of tea, “I know that you are ill.”

Damian's eyes watered at Pennyworth's tone.

Is this how a child feels when they get scolded?

He’d been in trouble before but he never felt this way.

“How did you know?” Damian asked softly. 

“Young Lad, I do have eyes,” Pennyworth said, raising an eyebrow at him.

But no, that couldn’t be.

He’d been careful. 

Damian had been hiding his symptoms. Besides his lack of eating, Pennyworth should have been oblivious toward his predicament. 

There was no way he could have found out.

“I do not understand, how did you find out?” Damian asked, as tears started to spill out.

“Master Damian-”

“No-” he interrupted, before Pennyworth could give him an explanation, “No, you shouldn't have found out. I was so careful. I tried so hard to hide it.”

He didn’t want anyone to know. 

It was just a stomach ache. 

His head would throb sometimes, but it wasn’t a big deal.

If he could just get his hands under control...

Damian did not want to become a burden.

Would his family kick him out?

He couldn’t fight anymore.

Not with how tired he was all the time. 

Damian choked up as sobs made their way out.

He didn't want to cry, especially in front of Pennyworth, but he couldn't help it. 

Damian looked up and saw Pennyworth beside him, his hand extended toward his face. He flinched backwards, heart thumping rapidly in his chest.

Pennyworth's eyes softened as he looked at him. He squeezed his shoulders.

“Here you go young lad,” Pennyworth said as he handed him a handkerchief. 

Damian mumbled a quick ‘thank you’ as he did his best to dry the tears on his face.

“I still don’t understand. How did you know? Was I too obvious?” Damian said, then shook his head. “Besides me, the only other person who knew…”

Damian trailed off as his eyes wide. 

It couldn’t be.

He wouldn't do that to him.

Would he?

“Drake told you...didn’t he?” Damian whispered, as he looked up at Pennyworth

“Master Damia-”

“No,” Damian cut off, “I don’t need you to make excuses for him.”

“Master Tim cares for you.” 

Damian shook his head.

He had caused Drake a lot of trouble lately.

Because of him, he was not going on patrol.

Drake was so busy trying to figure out what made him ill, that he had not been focusing on his cases.

It was his fault that the serial killer hadn't been caught.

“He sees me as a burden,” Damian said as a new wave of tears made their way down his face. 

“Now, now, Master Damian.” Pennyworth took the handkerchief out of Damian’s hand and started dabbing at his face. ”You are not a burden, you will never be a burden. Do you understand?”

Damian looked up at Pennyworth and saw the seriousness of his words

But could Damian really believe him?

He was no use to them as he was. 

Too ill to be useful.

If this was the league, he would've been killed by now.

There was no place for a weak link. No place for someone who couldn't move without his body aching, whose hands shook so badly he couldn’t hold a weapon. No place for someone who got winded for simply walking, whose thoughts were scattered and barely coherent most of the time. No place for people who were liable to fainting spells and spending most of their day in the bathroom vomiting.

There was no place for him.

Pennyworth kept staring at him, so Damian nodded at him hesitantly.

“My boy,” Pennyworth said, with a weary sigh, “we all want you to be well and healthy. Master Drake was simply trying to help.”

“But he gave me his word…” Damian said softly, as stared down into his tea.

“No, lad. He promised he would not tell Master Bruce, and he did not. You will be the one telling Master Bruce. And if you don't, I will." Pennyworth said with a serious tone as he squeezed Damian’s shoulder.

Damian felt his hands start shaking, and held them up to stare at. When he did, Pennyworth reached out and grasped them, squeezing gently.

“Do I have to?” Damian asked after a few seconds of silence.

“Master Damian, he is your father,” Pennyworth said as he patted his hands, “He needs to know. You and Master Timothy did great work on trying to figure out what is going on, but it's time to bring all hands on deck.”

Damian knew he had to tell Father, either he did it or Pennyworth would.

“Will you be there when I tell him?” He asked him, averting his eyes from their hands to the table.

Damian could not face his Father alone.

“Of course, Master Damian.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> It is I again! Sorry for the late update like always 🤔🤔 Honestly this episode was hard to write but with the of @cdelphiki I was finally able to get this chapter done. She honestly the Best! What did you guys think? This one was a sad one but honestly not the saddest one plan. You can find me on tumblr at @brokenhearted-queen. You can ask questions over there or i'll gives updates on when the next chapter up! I really love all your comment and kudos! I'll look forward to reading them! 😍😍💕💖

**Author's Note:**

> Thank you Cdelphiki for beta reading this for me!! So happy I can finally post this! Please leave comments and kudos! Find me in tumblr at @brokenhearted-queen


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